Step Dad
by Orange-Green
Summary: Brittany wanted her mother to be happy, she really did. But her mother's new husband gave her a bad feeling. Brittana pairing with Unholy Trinity friendship. Rated M for abuse and adult themes.
1. Chapter 1

Step Dad

A/N – This is not pleasant. Trigger warnings. Ignore the fact that Brittany didn't graduate with the rest of them. This takes place during senior year. I don't own anything you recognize. I tried hard to write fluff but I'm in a dull and dismal mood and this is what came out. It's mostly finished so I will update as soon as I can. I'm moving so my internet is hit or miss right now.

Santana watched with a bemused grin as Brittany sat hunched over her chemistry homework. The blonde's brow was furrowed and she was chewing on the tip of her pencil deep in concentration.

"How's it coming BrittBritt?"

Brittany sighed and flopped backwards onto the bed. "Science makes me sad."

Santana smiled and scooted closer until she was hovering over the blonde. "Well we can't have that. Now will you let me help you with your homework? I really don't mind."

"San," the blonde responded, flinging an arm over her eyes. "I told you, I have to do this on my own. If you help me you'll just end up doing it for me so we have more time for sweet lady kisses."

"And what's wrong with that? It sounds like pure awesome to me Brittz." Santana replied with a smirk. She lightly brushed her fingertips over the blonde's forearm, scratching.

Brittany uncovered her eyes and finally smiled up at her girlfriend. "Of course it is. Sweet lady kisses are always awesome. But you know I have to actually learn this stuff. Or I'll fail the class and not graduate and then I'll never get out of this house."

The blonde's smile faded at the thought. Santana once again lightly brushed Brittany's arm before linking their fingers. Just as she leaned in to press their lips together, a loud knock sounded on the bedroom door. Seconds later, the door swung open and a man with dark brown hair popped his head inside.

"Dinner's almost ready girls." The man said, eyeing their position on the bed. "And you know the rules Brittany, door open."

Brittany sighed as Craig Stevenson retreated from her bedroom, leaving the door wide open. With a frustrated groan, she pushed herself up from the bed. Santana chuckled as she too stood up from the bed as well.

"At least your new step dad is hot Brittany…that has to count for something."

"You think Craig is hot?" Brittany asked with a pout.

Santana laughed and reached to pull the blonde closer. She wrapped her arms around Brittany and leaned up on her toes, finally pressing their lips together. "I prefer blonde girls. But as far as dudes go…he's totally doable."

Brittany's face contorted into a grimace and she pulled away. "Well come on then, don't want to keep your boyfriend waiting for dinner."

"Britt." Santana whined when the blonde pulled away from her. She immediately knew she had taken her joking too far. Brittany did not like her mother's new husband. Santana could understand that but as far as step dads went, Craig didn't seem that bad to her. He was seemingly always present so their sexy times at the Pierce residence had been cut way back but Santana had to admit that he seemed nice enough.

"Baby, don't be like that." The brunette whined again. "You know you're my girl; I need my lady lovin'."

Brittany shook her head with a grin at the smaller girl's pout and let Santana pull her back flush against her. She wrapped her arms around the shorter girl and hummed contentedly into the kiss. Santana's pout was just as dangerous as the blonde's and they both knew it.

"Girls!"

It was Santana's turn to growl as the two once again split apart. "Ok, maybe you're right…he's a total douche always interfering with our sexy times."

Brittany giggled and pulled her girlfriend down the stairs where Craig, her mother, and little sister Ashley were already seated around the table.

"Britty," Susan said, her speech slurring slightly. "You girls stop foolin' around. Time to eat."

Brittany sighed at the sight of her mother's almost empty wine glass. She quirked a brow as Craig reached to refill her glass without a word. Santana gave her hand a squeeze as they settled in around the table.

"Thanks for letting me stay over Mrs. P, this looks great!" The Latina said with a smile.

"It's Mrs. S now." Craig said with a wink. "And you're more than welcome, happy to have you. Any friend of Brittany's is welcome here anytime…so long as the bedroom door stays open."

Ashley giggled as Brittany once again pouted. Santana just smirked.

By the time the dishes were cleared away, Susan had downed more than a full bottle of wine. Brittany just eyed her warily as she stumbled to her bedroom claiming a headache. Craig had sipped his own glass of wine but seemed content to allow his new wife to drink herself to sleep.

"Well, San, you ready to help me with my chemistry homework?" Brittany asked after loading their dishes into the dishwasher.

Santana smiled and nodded, allowing the blonde to pull her back toward the staircase leading up to her bedroom.

"Brittany?" Craig called before the two could escape the kitchen. Both girls turned back to the man expectantly. "It's a school night. No sleepovers tonight."

Brittany tensed and tightened her hold on Santana's hand. "Santana stays over all the time during the week. Mom never has a problem with it."

"Well your mom is…indisposed and I say Santana needs to head home for the night."

"She's…_indisposed_ or whatever because you kept pouring wine for her all night! And what about that 'any friend of Brittany's is welcome here?' Isn't that what you just said?"

Santana cringed at the look that passed over Craig's face and at Brittany's tone. "Its fine Britt, I'll help you with your chemistry tomorrow during lunch." She interjected, hoping to ease the tension.

Craig sighed and nodded slightly to the brunette, his mouth set in a grim line. Brittany was still fuming as she walked Santana to her car, purposefully slamming the front door behind her.

"You ok baby?" Santana whispered.

The blonde sighed and scuffed her shoe on the ground as they leaned against Santana's car. "I just hate him. You saw him…he just kept giving mom more…he knows she's not supposed to be drinking with her medication but he does that like all the time. She's always drunk…"

Santana nodded sympathetically, knowing full well Susan had been taking a number of anti depressants and other medications since Mr. Pierce had been killed in a car wreck a few years before. "Well, maybe now she can stop taking some of that shit. I mean, she does seem happy with him right?"

"That doesn't mean she needs to drink so much." Brittany replied, still frowning. "And he shouldn't be able to make you leave…he's not my dad. Mom let's you stay over all the time."

"I know baby, I'm sorry." The brunette said, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend. "But just think…not being together tonight means we'll be even happier to see each other tomorrow morning…in the locker room…in the shower if you're lucky."

Brittany's eyes widened and a blush crept over her cheeks. Santana just smirked, loving the effect she had over the taller girl. Brittany smiled and pulled her in for a good night kiss. "I love you Santana Lopez…and your dirty mind."

"Especially my dirty mind."

"Especially your smokin' hot body." Brittany corrected with a squeeze to the brunette's ass.

Santana giggled as the blonde pressed a loving kiss to her temple. "Good night Britt. Don't forget to wear that tiger print thong for me tomorrow…you know that thing makes me hot."

Brittany swallowed thickly at Santana's husky voice. She nodded with hooded eyes as the brunette winked before slipping into her car and pulling away.

Brittany exhaled slowly before turning and walking back into her home. She heard who she assumed was Craig still in the kitchen cleaning up and immediately headed back up the stairs for the privacy of her own bedroom to continue wading through her homework.

She was determined to graduate on time with her friends even though some of her teachers were already hinting to the fact that she most likely would not. Brittany couldn't stand the thought of remaining behind in Lima and living with her mother and Craig for another year. While the younger man seemed to make Susan happy, Brittany felt on edge whenever he was around. And now, that was all the time. The two had married a few months prior and he had moved into the family home. She cringed at the memories of Craig walking in on her while she was changing or just getting out of the shower. He seemed to have a knack for knowing when she was not completely dressed. He always apologized and exited quickly but he still never thought to knock before pushing his way in the room.

Before settling down for her own work, Brittany popped her head into her ten year old sister's bedroom. "Hey Ash, get your story finished for English?"

Ashley looked up from the book she was reading on her bed and nodded with a smile. "Yep. Thanks for helping me think of the ending. I bet Ms. Cook is gonna like my story best!"

"She better!" Brittany exclaimed. "Your story is awesome…I totally didn't expect the worm to be the bad guy instead of the bird. I mean hello, birds eat worms. You are so going to be a great writer some day I just know it. Unless you want to be a rocket surgeon, then you can totally do that."

Ashley smiled as her older sister tucked her into bed and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Britt? Do you like Craig?"

The taller blonde sighed as she looked down at her sister. Ashley took after their father with her hair a darker shade of blonde and green eyes. "Not really…do you?"

Ashley just shrugged. Brittany chewed on her lip, almost afraid to ask her next question. "Has he ever…I mean, does he ever do anything or say anything to make you feel…icky?"

The girl nodded thoughtfully and Brittany's heart dropped. "I don't like him helping mama drink. And I don't like when they kiss and stuff. That's icky. And his jokes are super dumb."

Brittany sighed in relief and nodded with a smile. "Aren't they? But hey," she said once again turning serious, "if he ever does do something to you, no matter what it is, you tell me ok?"

Ashley once again nodded. "I promise."

The older girl smiled again and winked before hopping up from the bed. Ashley giggled as Brittany saluted good night and closed the door softly behind her. Brittany was still smiling as she finally dropped back onto her own bed to sift through the pages in front of her. She wasn't sure how much time had passed but she had only managed to get about ten pages covered before she was struggling to remain awake, the soft light from her desk lamp lulling her to sleep.

Brittany finally decided to pack it in for the night and with a yawn, she shuffled down the hall to the bathroom she and her sister shared. When she finished brushing her teeth and washed her face, Brittany flipped off the light and stepped back out into the hallway. She was immediately submerged in darkness.

_Could have sworn I left my light on…maybe the gnomes struck again._ She thought to herself as she carefully made her way back down the hall to her bedroom. She slipped into her room and softly shut the door behind her. Before she could reach to flip the light back on, a hand clamped down over her mouth and she felt a body pressed tightly behind her.

The blonde's scream was muffled against the hand. Brittany tried to claw at the hand over her face but with a spin from her attacker, she was pinned against the door, her arm caught between her own body and the wood of the door.

"Shut up!" Craig hissed into her ear. "Shut the fuck up you little bitch."

Brittany tried to raise her leg enough to kick off of the door but Craig pushed into her again roughly and twisted her head to the side so that one ear was pressed against the door.

"You think you're allowed to speak to me that way?" he spat into the side of her face. "I will not be disrespected young lady. Do you understand me?"

The blonde nodded the best she could against the door and his hand, hoping he would release her. Instead of setting her free, Craig moaned and leaned closer, inhaling the scent of her shampoo. Brittany whimpered against his hand and squeezed her eyes shut tightly.

Craig shifted just enough to slip his free hand down the blonde's stomach and cupped her center over her sweatpants. Brittany's cry was once again muffled by the man's hand as she struggled to free herself. Craig once again pressed himself as close as he could and the blonde cringed at the feel of his erection pressing into her backside.

"Stop!" he hissed again. "Stop fighting Brittany…I bet Ashley would be a good girl for me."

Brittany's eyes snapped open as tears began to sting. She blinked them away but willed herself to still. She whimpered again when she felt Craig smile into her hair.

"Good girl." He whispered breathlessly. "I'm going to move my hand…if you scream or try to fight me…I'll snap your neck and go make friends with little sister. Nod if you understand me."

Brittany nodded. Craig did remove his hand from her mouth but he remained pressed firmly against her backside, the hand between her legs clumsily slipping down into her sweatpants. The sound of a zipper left Brittany clenching her eyes shut tightly once again and she pressed her forehead against the door, her breathing becoming ragged and shallow.

Craig moaned behind her and from the movement she sensed, she could tell he was frantically stroking himself. The hand in her pants roughly squeezed her before two fingers pushed up into her and Brittany choked out a sob.

Craig ignored her and continued to rub himself and thrust up into her. He finally tensed behind her and sighed out another moan as his orgasm washed over him a short time later. The man dropped his head to the blonde's shoulder, panting. He pulled his hand from between her legs and swiftly readjusted himself. Before stepping away from Brittany, he once again pinned her flat to the door, both hands on either side of her head.

"I wouldn't mention this to anyone if you know what's good for you. Wouldn't want anything to happen to Ashley…or Santana." Feeling the blonde once again tense against him, Craig chuckled. "She is one sexy little spic. I almost hope you do open that pretty little mouth of yours so I can have an excuse to fuck her. I bet I could make her squeal."

Brittany was trembling by the time Craig stepped away from her but she said nothing. She remained standing, pressed to the door, her fists clenched tightly with tears streaming down her face. Her step father toyed with the ends of her hair with one hand and leaned back in with a single finger pressed his lips. "Shhh…now get to bed. It's a school night."

Brittany scampered away from him and slid down the wall, pulling her knees up to her chest. With a smirk Craig slipped quietly out the door. The blonde buried her head in her knees and allowed her sobs to over take her.

xxxx

The next day, Santana eyed Brittany suspiciously. The blonde had been even more spacey than usual. Even at Cheerio's practice, Brittany had seemed out of it. She dropped a freshman in a simple lift and missed steps on routines they had been performing for months.

Coach Sylvester had finally had enough and sent the blonde to run laps "until her legs fell off or the scent of failure had faded". Santana and Quinn exchanged a glance at the end of practice as Brittany continued to run, clearly winded. Only after Sue stormed off to her office did the two have the nerve to go flag Brittany down.

The taller blonde allowed them to drag her off the track and back into the locker room, too tired to protest. Santana tried to ignore the way Brittany flinched away from her touch when she tried to help her girlfriend change out of her sweat soaked practice clothes.

"Come on B, let's get you cleaned up." Santana said softly.

She reached for the hem of Brittany's shirt, the back of her fingers brushing the blonde's abdomen. Brittany's response was immediate.

"Don't touch me!" she hissed with a cringe. "Just leave me alone."

Santana stood stunned before she finally backed away. She then shook her head and stormed out of the locker room leaving Brittany alone with her thoughts.

The blonde sighed and dropped her head into her hands. She had gotten no sleep the night before, too afraid Craig would return. She had barely managed to make her way to Ashley's room on trembling legs to be certain her little sister was sleeping safe and sound.

But now, all Brittany wanted to do was curl up in Santana's arms and tell her everything. Santana always knew what to do. But Craig's threats kept repeating in her mind. She couldn't tell Santana, she couldn't tell anyone. Brittany couldn't risk Craig harming Ashley or Santana.

With a sigh, Brittany dragged herself off to the showers, knowing she would be late for class but she couldn't find it in herself to care. Every time she thought of what had happened the night before, she had felt the need to clean herself. She sighed as she let the scalding hot water pour over her body for the fourth time since Craig had left her bedroom.

By the time she exited the shower, Brittany was certain first period was almost over but once again couldn't bring herself to care. She quickly dressed and stepped back out into the common area and was startled by the sight of Quinn leaning against the lockers waiting for her. The shorter blonde smiled apologetically.

"Hey B."

Brittany tried to smile back at the Cheerio captain. "Hey Q. Sorry about dropping Cecilia…hope she isn't broken."

Quinn dismissed her concerns with a wave. "Don't worry about her Britt. She needed to be dropped on her ass if you ask me. She was getting way too cocky."

The taller blonde shrugged as she pulled her wet hair up into the tight regulation pony. Quinn watched her closely, her eyes narrowing at the sight of the taller girl's hands shaking slightly.

"Santana is worried about you…so am I."

Brittany dropped down on a bench with a sigh. "I'm just tired. I didn't mean to snap at her. I just didn't sleep much last night."

"Yeah." Quinn said with a nod. "She mentioned you were a little upset about your step dad last night. Did something happen after Santana left?"

Brittany felt her blood run cold at Quinn's question. Quinn was super sneaky sometimes and Brittany was afraid her secret had already been found out, which could of course put Ashley and Santana at risk. "No, it's fine. I just don't like how he lets my mom drink so much. It's not good for her. Ash needs mom."

Brittany breathed a sigh of relief when her friend seemed satisfied with her answer.

"Trust me; I know how you feel about that. My mom is a total lush." Quinn replied with a chuckle. "As long as you're ok though B; San and I were just worried about you…you seemed a little off. You don't have to like him you know. It must be a huge adjustment for you after your dad…but you'll be out of there before you know it."

Brittany nodded, keeping her gaze on her gym bag at her feet so her friend couldn't see the tears welling in her eyes. Quinn pushed off the locker and moved toward the door. She stopped just before stepping back out into the hallway.

"Just talk to San, will you Britt? She's worried. And you know how she gets if she doesn't get her cuddle time with you."

Brittany couldn't help but chuckle at Quinn's smirk when she finally glanced up. She nodded to her friend, determined to find Santana and apologize for brushing her off so harshly.

Quinn winked at her before slipping out into the hallway. Brittany watched her go and once alone, her smile faded from her face. If she couldn't tell Santana what happened, she couldn't expect her girlfriend to understand and act any differently toward her. Brittany immediately felt even more guilty for pushing Santana away in the locker room.

She quickly finished getting ready and headed back out to class. Instead of going to her own first class, which was indeed about to end, she stood outside the doorway of Santana's. When the brunette exited the room after the bell she was surprised to be pulled down a quiet hallway by her girlfriend who just a short time before didn't seem to even want to be touched.

"Brittany? What the fuck?"

Instead of responding, Brittany pulled Santana into a darkened classroom and kissed her soundly. The brunette moaned and wrapped her arms around the blonde, attempting to deepen the kiss. Brittany was pleasantly surprised that she had no trouble pushing thoughts of Craig from her mind as Santana held her tightly.

She eased Santana back gently, helping her hop up onto one of the tables. The brunette moaned again and clutched at Brittany desperately, wrapping her legs around her girlfriend's body. The blonde slid her hand up Santana's thigh and shuddered involuntarily as the thought of Craig touching her the night before forced its way into her mind. She suddenly pulled away, her tired mind failing to distinguish the two scenarios. Brittany fought panic at the thought that maybe she was forcing herself on Santana. The Latina however, growled at the loss of contact.

"What, what's wrong?" she muttered breathlessly.

Brittany cupped both of Santana's cheeks and gazed deeply into her dark brown eyes worriedly. "Did I scare you? Are you sure you want me to? I mean I just came out of nowhere and jumped you and I don't want to force you or-"

Santana silenced her by crashing their lips together once again. With a lingering lick to Brittany's bottom lip, the brunette pulled away with a smirk. "That clear enough? I want you…now."

Brittany growled at the smoldering look in Santana's eyes and once again pulled the Latina in for a searing kiss. Within no time, Santana was moaning and writhing under Brittany's hands. She clutched the blonde tightly as she finally relaxed and calmed. Brittany pressed a tender kiss to Santana's temple and held her while she caught her breath.

"I love you." Brittany whispered.

Santana could only nod and squeeze the girl in her arms until she came back down to earth. Finally, she was able to lift her head from Brittany's shoulder and press a kiss to the taller girl's neck. With a contended sigh, Santana nuzzled the blonde's neck, and inched her hand up under the other girl's uniform top.

Brittany tensed slightly and reached to still her girlfriend's wandering hand. She pressed another kiss to Santana's temple and squeezed her with the arm still circling her. "I'm sorry about this morning."

Santana pulled away just enough to look up into those blue eyes she loved so much. She bit her bottom lip at the unusually guarded look in those eyes. She couldn't help but think she was missing something but she tried to push the uneasy thought away. "It's ok Britt. I know Coach was out of control this morning. As long as you're ok. You are right?"

Brittany smiled and nodded. "Of course." She pressed her lips to Santana's forehead before pulling away to help her girlfriend back into her spanks. Before the two slipped out of the dark classroom, Brittany wrapped her arms around the smaller girl from behind, holding her tightly.

Santana clutched the arms holding her around her waist tightly, once again feeling as though she was missing something. But when Brittany pulled away and linked their hands together with a tender smile, Santana allowed herself to be led back out into the hallway without questioning.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N – Same warnings, this is not a happy story. Deals with abuse. Thanks for the positive feedback, reviews, alerts and all! I really appreciate it! Just another warning, it is going to get much worse before it gets better. Once again, I don't own anything you recognize. Oh and I don't have a beta so all mistakes are mine. On with the story!

Chapter 2

Brittany clenched the sheets tightly in her fists as Craig thrust into her painfully. More than a month had passed since the first incident and her step father was only becoming bolder in his advances. He was no longer content to simply touch the blonde and had progressed to forcefully having sex with her.

Craig had even gone so far as to add a sleeping pill to his wife's nightly medicine regimen allowing him even more security to slip into Brittany's room, which he was doing with alarming increased frequency.

Brittany's main concern in the home was Ashley. While she wanted to lock her own door at night to keep her step father out, the blonde refused, afraid he would just turn to her little sister's room instead. She had finally decided to sit Ashley down and make her promise to lock her own bedroom door at night and not unlock it for anyone other than herself or their mother.

"Listen Ash," Brittany had said, taking the girls hands in her own, "I need you to promise me something."

The little girl had nodded solemnly, knowing better than to question when Brittany was being so serious. Brittany was rarely ever serious. So Ashley knew it must be important.

"I need you to promise me that you'll lock your bedroom door every night. And I want you to hang that old cow bell daddy gave you on the handle…understand?"

"But why Britty? What's the matter?"

Brittany pulled her little sister into her arms and pressed a kiss into her sandy blonde hair. "Nothing sweetie, nothing's the matter…you just have to promise me ok? And…and if someone other than me or mama comes into your room at night I want you to scream super loud for me ok? You promise me!"

Ashley nodded again, beginning to sniffle, not understanding why her big sister seemed so upset. "I promise." She said quietly.

Brittany once again pressed a kiss to the girl's head and squeezed her tightly. The relief Brittany felt when she silently slipped to her sister's room and twisted the doorknob only to find it locked from the inside was the only thing making her home life bearable.

Try as she might, Brittany couldn't help but shy away from Santana's touches when they were alone. She tried to keep her mind clear of Craig but even the gentlest touch from her girlfriend could send her into a panic. Santana tried to be patient but without knowing what was going on with Brittany, she found herself becoming frustrated and the two were unfortunately arguing quite frequently.

Brittany knew something had to change. But she was too afraid to tell anyone that her step father was coming into her room almost every night. Every time he finished with her, before he would leave, he once again threatened to hurt either Ashley or Santana.

The blonde knew she wasn't the smartest person, but she knew she had to protect her two girls. If anything happened to Ashley or Santana she would never forgive herself. So she simply closed her eyes and tried to block Craig out as he forcefully thrust in and out of her on her bed. He had once again fed Susan a mix of medications and alcohol before helping her to her room on the far end of the first floor.

"Jesus Christ." Craig hissed, finally pulling himself from inside of her. "Your mother is no where near that tight. And she's not the little slut that you are."

Brittany cringed but kept her face turned away from him, refusing to acknowledge him.

"That's right." He continued. "I know all about you…all about your reputation. About how you've fucked every single guy in that school. And how now you're a lesbian for Santana Lopez. She must be something to tame a little slut like you."

Craig finally reached and roughly gripped her jaw, turning her head so that she was forced to face him. She struggled to control her breathing as he hovered over her. She felt a shiver run through her at the look that passed over his face.

"I bet you don't just lay there limp with her…what does she do to make you scream? Oh I know…you dykes eat each other out don't you?"

Craig grinned wickedly and Brittany cringed as he slid further down her body and forced her legs apart. She cried out in pain as he bit down roughly on the sensitive flesh between her legs. "Stop, _please_! You're hurting me!" She cried, trying to push him away. Even in her panicked state, Brittany couldn't stand the thought of Craig taking one of the few remaining things she had to share with Santana that he hadn't violated.

Craig pulled away sharply and slapped the blonde across the face. "What did I say? You keep your voice down! Do you want Ashley to hear you and come running? I'll fuck her until she snaps in two if you don't shut up you little cunt."

Brittany whimpered and clasped a hand over her mouth to keep from crying out again. Craig smirked at the sight of her tears. "That's better."

He pushed the blonde's legs apart once again, her muscles aching from the strain. When he finally left Brittany alone in her bed, she curled tightly into herself and sobbed silently into her pillow for the few remaining hours until she had to get ready for school.

xxxx

The only solace Brittany had in her home was when Santana was allowed to come for dinner and stay or Ashley was allowed to sleep over at a friend's house. On those nights, the blonde felt like she could breathe. On those rare nights she and Santana were sometimes able to regain a little of what they were both afraid they were losing.

She finally found herself on one of those nights, Susan being coherent enough to tell her to invite Santana over for dinner. With a smile, Brittany reached and squeezed her girlfriend's hand under the table. Santana smiled back before turning back to the pasta dish in front of her and complimenting whoever had prepared it.

Craig rolled his eyes in mock embarrassment as the Latina gushed over the meal. When he finally caught Brittany's eye, the man smirked slightly. She refused to allow him to ruin her night however. It was a Friday, and Santana was allowed to sleep over on Friday's. Even more importantly, Ashley had already left to sleep over at a friend's so Brittany was certain nothing could go wrong.

"Oh, Britty, guess what?" Susan slurred, on her third glass of wine.

Brittany glanced to Santana quickly before trying to smile at her mother. "What's that mom?"

"You have a new daddy."

Santana held her breath as she glanced sideways toward her girlfriend. Brittany remained frozen, eyes on her mother. Susan giggled and lifted her wine glass once again. "That's right; Craig here has adopted you…and Ash too. That way, if anything happens to me…he'll take care of you. Your new daddy…"

"Signed the papers today." Craid added with a smile. He reached and took Susan's hand before turning his gaze on his new daughter.

Brittany remained frozen and silent. Santana carefully reached and clasped the blonde's hand in her own once again under the table. Brittany squeezed back before reaching with her free hand and taking a sip of her water. Santana frowned at the sight of her girlfriend's hand trembling under the slight weight of the glass.

xxxx

Later that night, Santana held Brittany tightly as she cried.

"He's not my dad." Brittany whimpered. "My dad was good…I don't _want_ a new dad."

Santana sighed and tried to calm the blonde by gently running her fingers through her soft hair. "I know baby. I know. Your mom was drunk; she wouldn't have said that otherwise…she just wasn't thinking. She knows he can't ever be your dad."

"She doesn't know anything!" Brittany hissed. "She's a fucking drunk!"

Santana cringed, not used to Brittany cursing, especially about her mother. "I'm so sorry Britt. You just have to finish this year and then we are out of here. You and me…wherever you want to go."

Brittany tightened her grip around Santana's waist. With a sigh she buried her face in her girlfriend's shoulder. "I don't want to leave Ash here with him. Can she come too?"

"Of course she can." The Latina responded immediately. "Your kid sister is the only kid I can stand. She can come with us. We'll be great guardians!"

Brittany finally smiled and pressed a kiss to Santana's neck. "Like the birds?"

Santana smiled, knowing Brittany was thinking of the movie with the owls. "Even better baby."

Brittany finally relaxed as Santana continued to stroke her hair soothingly. As Brittany's breathing finally evened out into sleep, Santana found herself looking forward to the day she and the blonde could move away together even more than usual. She couldn't help but worry once again that Brittany hadn't seemed quite herself for weeks now. She naively hoped that just getting her away from her mother and Craig would do the trick.

xxxx

Brittany found herself struggling through classes even more than usual. With a sigh, she knew it was because she wasn't sleeping. How could she with Craig sneaking into her bedroom almost every night. Her heart clenched at the thought that her hopes and dreams of graduating and escaping away with Santana were crumbling right in front of her.

She had to graduate. Brittany had to graduate and get away from Craig. And she obviously couldn't get away from him without passing her classes and graduating. Even so, she refused to leave without taking Ashley with her. Even as she thought out different ways to escape, the blonde felt guilty for leaving her mother behind with the man she had grown to loathe and was clearly dangerous.

But her guilt quickly turned to anger at the thought of how easily her mother would throw back a bottle of wine and never take time to think of what became of her daughters when she was passed out drunk. As much as Brittany loved her mother, she resented her more. Susan could sleep, blissfully unaware while Brittany was being fucked by Craig almost every night.

xxxx

Susan groaned and rubbed her temple as Ashley once again clinked her spoon against the side of her cereal bowl. If the girl only knew how loudly the sound echoed through her head due to her hangover. She sighed and forced her eyes open to eye her youngest daughter warily.

Brittany had already left for Cheerio's practice and Craig had left early for work leaving the two of them alone together. Susan noticed that Ashley looked slightly pale and had dark circles forming under her eyes.

"You feelin' alright baby girl?"

Ashley nodded and drank the last of her milk with a slurp. Susan smiled at the sight of the milk mustache on Ashley's top lip. "Are you sure? Are you ok with the way things are now? I know we haven't really talked about Craig but…you like him don't you?"

Ashley turned her gaze to her mother. "I don't like him 'cause Britty doesn't and Britty likes everyone. He makes her sad."

Susan sighed with a nod. "That's what I thought. Do you know why she doesn't like him?"

"I told you…he makes her sad. She cries at night and he's mean to her."

Susan felt her heart clench at the somber look on her youngest daughter's face. "Should I talk to her? Do you think she'll talk to me?"

Ashley smiled slightly and nodded. "She wants to talk to you mama, I'm sure she does! You can fix it!"

Susan leaned forward and hugged Ashley tightly. She chuckled at the thought of getting mothering advice from a ten year old but decided it was time she got back to taking care of her family. She just needed a little liquid courage to do so.

xxxx

Later that evening after Cheerio's practice, Brittany collapsed wearily onto her bed. Craig was out with friends and Susan was almost sober when the blonde limped into the house. Ashley was at a friend's house as was becoming more and more regular, which she was grateful for.

Brittany was still sprawled on her bed when a knock sounded on her door. "Come in." She called tiredly, immediately realizing it couldn't be Craig because he never waited for an invitation.

Susan popped her head into the door and smiled at the sight of her oldest daughter stretched across the bed haphazardly. "Hey Britt."

The blonde propped herself up on her elbows and nodded to her mother with a sigh. Susan sighed in return.

"Can I sit with you Brittany? I was hoping we could talk."

Brittany pulled herself into a seated position and shrugged with her eyes on the floor. Susan inched closer until she finally perched on the edge of Brittany's bed.

"How is class going Britt? It feels like we haven't talked in ages. Is everything going ok?"

Brittany warily eyed her mother and shrugged again. "School sucks. I'm scared I won't graduate…but I have to…I just have to."

Susan felt her heart clench at her daughter's words. She knew school was hard for Brittany and immediately felt guilty for not being around more to help. "Oh sweetie, I'm sorry. I should be helping you with your homework. I know school hasn't ever been easy for you but…you always make it through. You will this year too. I'm so proud of you, glee and Cheerios, and still keeping your grades up. But maybe…maybe I could help you with your school work?"

Brittany glanced sideways toward her mother and shrugged once again. "Santana helps when she can. I'm super slow though so I hate to bother her."

"Santana loves you. You're no bother to her." Susan insisted. "But I should help you more. I haven't been around for you and I'm sorry Britt. I'm sorry. You just seem so sad lately…what's wrong sweetheart?"

Brittany absently plucked at her comforter, not able to find words to address her mother. Susan was saying things the blonde had longed to hear but she still couldn't trust the older woman, not with the smell of alcohol still faintly on her breath.

"Do you like Craig?" Susan asked suddenly.

Brittany cringed at the direct question and her mother immediately knew the answer. Her heart sank at the realization. She willed her foggy mind to clear and promised she wouldn't drink any more that night. "Why not baby?"

Brittany clasped her hands tightly in her lap and once again looked anywhere other than at her mother. Susan sighed and reached for Brittany's hands. "You like everyone Britty…why not Craig? You can tell me baby…please…You know I love you. Why don't you like Craig? Did he say something to you or…do something?"

Brittany felt tears stinging her eyes and she blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision. Susan reached and cupped her daughter's cheeks, finally seeing the tears. "Brittany? What's wrong? Please tell me! Is something going on? I know I haven't been the best mom lately but…you tell me if something is wrong. Britt?"

Brittany choked on her tears as she gazed into blue eyes so much like her own. Susan blinked rapidly, trying to force away her own tears at the sight of the pain in her daughter's eyes.

"He hurts me mama."

With that statement, Brittany collapsed into her mother's lap and sobbed. Susan exhaled sharply and wrapped her arms tightly around Brittany's trembling frame. The blonde sobbed as she told her story, from the first time Craig had forced himself on her, to his constant threats.

"Please believe me mama…please!" Brittany cried. "He said he'd hurt Ashley or Santana so I couldn't tell…please believe me! I didn't want him to, I swear! I didn't want it mama! _Please_!"

Susan blinked back her own tears as she held her oldest daughter in her arms. "It's ok Brittany." She finally whispered. "I believe you baby. I believe you. I won't let him hurt you anymore. I won't drink anymore, I swear sweetheart. I won't let him touch you again! I promise I won't let him hurt you again. I'm so sorry…I'm so sorry!"

Brittany finally relaxed in her mother's arms. She sobbed out all her hurt and sorrow from the last weeks, finally feeling hope that her mother would protect her. Finally, when her sobs eased into whimpers, Susan helped ease Brittany into a seated position.

"Brittany, I want you to go stay with Santana tonight."

The young blonde looked back at her mother questioningly and the smile Susan returned helped ease her heart for the first time in weeks.

"Go stay with Santana. I don't want you here when I kick him out. I won't let him hurt you anymore Brittany. Ok? I'm so sorry baby…I'm so sorry. I'll make this up to you I promise! Everything is ok now…everything will be fine. Mama's gonna take care of you."

Brittany nodded; finally feeling a smile split her own face. Susan leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her daughter's forehead. "Go on. Get your things and get going. He'll be back soon and I won't let that bastard see you again."

Brittany pulled back from her mother with a frown. "Will you be alright? He won't hurt you?"

Susan smiled tenderly. "No baby, I'll be fine. And tomorrow…you, me, and Ashley are going to start from scratch. We'll be fine. I'm going to take care of you, I swear! Everything is going to be different from here on out."

Brittany nodded and let her mother pull her back into her arms. For the first time in weeks, the blonde finally felt safe with her mother.

xxxx

Susan sat anxiously waiting…listening for her husband's car to pull into the driveway. She steeled herself when she finally heard the front door open and close.

She tried to push away her nausea at the sound of her husband bypassing their bedroom to climb the steps toward her daughters' rooms. When Brittany's door finally swung open, Susan clenched her fists.

"Susan?" Craig asked obviously surprised. "What are you doing up here? Where's Brittany…is everything alright?"

Susan slowly stood to her feet, facing her husband. "She's at Santana's." she replied lowly.

Craig nodded and sighed, seemingly not bothered. "Well that's good I suppose. Although I do feel better when those two are here…I worry about that Santana girl being a bad influence on our Britty."

Susan felt her blood begin to boil. "You sick bastard." She hissed.

"Excuse me?" Craig replied, eerily calm.

Susan inched closer to him, fists still clenched. "How dare you. How dare you touch my daughter! Get out! You pack your bags and get the fuck out of my home! You get out this instant or I swear to God, I will kill you!"

Craig sighed. With a slight smile, he nodded and backed out of the bedroom. Susan felt her anger rising at his apparent acceptance. He wasn't even denying her claims. She rushed out of the bedroom into the hallway in a rage.

"You asshole!" she screeched. "You're not even going to deny it? You're not even going to bother to lie and say you didn't rape my daughter?"

Craig turned back to Susan with a cold smile. "Of course not. Why should I? She's the best fuck I've ever had. And I have no intention of letting her get away from me."

Susan felt her blood turn to ice in her veins. "You get out of this house right now! I won't let you touch her again!"

"I don't need your permission." Craig replied lowly. "She's my daughter now remember…I adopted her. If anything happens to you…she's all mine."

Susan froze in the hallway, mere feet away from her husband who was leaning against the stairway railing. "I'll kill you." She hissed. "Touch her again and I'll kill you!"

When her husband simply chuckled, she leapt toward him with a yell. Craig ducked just slightly and with a quick thrust of his elbow, Susan tumbled down the stairwell, landing in a crumpled heap at the bottom. He smirked as he slowly descended the stairwell to where she remained unmoving.

xxxx

Brittany had the best night that she could remember. She stayed over with Santana and the two had been free to chat and kiss without any interruption. When the Latina had rolled over on top of her and began trailing kisses down her chest, Brittany hadn't even thought of Craig once.

The blonde had even found herself falling apart under Santana's loving touch without a second thought. The brunette pulled her girlfriend closer, feeling completely connected for the first time in weeks.

Brittany smiled contentedly up at Santana and lovingly brushed dark hair behind her ears. Before Santana could lean down and press their lips together tenderly, the blonde smirked and flipped their positions so that she could once again claim the brunette's body.

Later that night as Santana slept soundly with her head on the blonde's shoulder, Brittany allowed her mind to drift back to her mother. She considered calling to see if Craig was really gone. But she smiled as she thought of the look on Susan's face. Her mother was finally going to keep them safe. Brittany fell asleep content that Craig would soon be gone for good.

xxxx

Santana and Brittany slipped through the hallways of McKinley oblivious to those around them. They had spent a wonderful night together and felt more connected than they had in weeks. They were still smiling as they slipped into Glee, hands clasped tightly.

It wasn't until Emma Pillsbury and Coach Sylvester both entered the choir room together that Brittany's smile faded. Santana looked at her questioningly, their hands still tightly clasped.

"Brittany," Emma said softly, "I'm afraid we need you to come with us."

All the other glee kids turned and eyed her curiously. Santana frowned at the serious expression on Sue's face and the even more frightened than usual look on Miss Pillsbury's face. But Brittany just swallowed thickly and with a nod, stood from her seat and walked closer to them.

Santana immediately sprang from her seat to follow. Sue nodded slightly at her as they made their way back to Coach Sylvester's office. Once finally inside, they ushered Brittany into one of the chairs.

"Brittany," Miss Pillsbury said timidly, "I'm so sorry…there's no easy way to say this but…there's been an accident."

Santana immediately tensed, remembering a similar conversation from when Brittany's father was killed a few years before. Brittany however seemed frozen. She didn't acknowledge Miss Pillsbury and instead just turned her gaze to her Coach.

Sue smiled sadly. "I'm sorry kiddo…but your mother was killed. She tripped and fell down the stairs…she died instantly."

Brittany's heart stopped as Coach Sylvester's words finally sank in. The usually ditzy blonde had no question that Craig was to blame. And she also knew that by telling her mother what had happened, she herself was responsible for her mother's death.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N – again, this is M for a reason. There is abuse of just about every kind. I'm currently sitting in a parking lot stealing internet so I can get this posted before I move. I think this will be 7 chapters even though I'm a little OCD and I hate ending stories on a chapter number like 7 so I may tack on an epilogue. We'll see. But, my point is, we're in the thick of things and once again, it has to get worse before it gets better. Thanks again for so much love for the workings of my twisted mind. To you anon reviewers, you rock and I wish I could chat with and thank you personally. So thanks!

Chapter 3

The funeral was a quiet affair, a few friends making up the entire audience since the girls didn't really have any other family. Brittany and Ashley stood together, hands clasped in the cemetery as the casket was lowered into the ground. It was a dreary, overcast day.

Craig stood off to the side slightly, dressed in a black trench coat and looking as though he would fall a part at any moment.

Santana and the rest of the glee club were close behind the two sisters. The brunette kept her hand on Brittany's arm or shoulder throughout the entire service. The blonde didn't cry. She felt too numb inside for tears. Ashley on the other hand had been crying all morning as she clung to her big sister and Brittany tried her best to be strong and comfort the young girl.

The crowd finally began to thin and they started to make their way back to the Pierce residence. Santana sighed, not understanding why in times like this, people thought bringing food and hanging out with the family was a good idea. In reality, all she wanted to do was get Brittany to her own home alone where she could hold her without the ever present Craig. He seemed to be hovering even more than usual when they were at Brittany's. They had in turn opted to spend most of their time at the Lopez home.

Santana and Quinn rode together in the car with Brittany and Ashley from the cemetery. No one said much on the ride or as they finally pulled to a stop. Craig jumped out of the car in front of them and rushed into the house with a yell.

When Brittany and the others stepped inside, the blonde gasped at the sight of Craig standing at the bottom of the steps holding Lord Tubbington.

"What are you doing? Put him down!" Brittany exlaimed.

Craig growled and wrapped one hand around the large cat's neck. Lord Tubbington was hissing and scratching, trying to free himself but the man held on.

"This fucking cat killed your mother!" Craig yelled. "She tripped over him. That's how she fell! She landed right here where I'm standing Brittany. Your damn cat killed your mother! I won't have this fucking animal in my house."

"No!" Santana exclaimed. "Craig, you can't be serious, that's Britt's cat! Just-just let him go. I'll take him home with me!"

Brittany was already rushing forward to rescue her beloved cat. Craig growled and with a twist, he snapped the cat's neck. He dropped the lifeless animal at the blonde's feet just as she reached him. Even Santana and Quinn were stunned to silence at what they had just witnessed.

"That cat killed my wife. I won't have it."

Craig turned and stormed further into the house, leaving the astonished guests standing in the doorway. Brittany whimpered as she dropped to her knees and scooped the large cat up into her arms.

"He killed him…he killed Lord Tubbington." She said, her voice flat and devoid of emotion.

Santana felt a chill at the blonde's blank tone and expressionn and she finally forced herself to move forward and dropped next to her girlfriend. "Holy shit Brittany…I…I'm so sorry."

The blonde quickly rose to her feet and rushed through the house and out into the back yard where she frantically began clawing at the ground with her bare hands. Santana once again rushed closer, Quinn with her.

"He's ruined everything!" Brittany screamed. "He killed them…I hate him!"

Santana felt tears streaming down her own cheeks at the sight of her distraught girlfriend frantically clawing at the ground. "Baby-"

"No!" Brittany wailed, "No, I didn't mean to! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to!"

The brunette finally wrapped her arms around the frantic blonde and tried to hold her tightly. "Stop baby, please. Stop, it's not your fault Brittany. It's not!"

Quinn stood to the side watching as Santana finally corralled a flailing Brittany. The blonde was sobbing in the Latina's arms and Santana was looking just as broken. Quinn finally inched forward and wrapped her arms around them both.

Tina and Rachel stood off to the side, each comforting Ashley while Mike and Puck went in search of shovels to help bury the cat. Sam stepped closer with a picnic basket he had swiped from the kitchen and smiled sadly as he placed Lord Tubbington into the makeshift casket.

It may have been silly but the glee kids all gathered and sang softly as the cat was finally buried. Brittany clung tightly to Santana who continued to simply stroke her long blonde hair and whisper soothingly.

Mr. Schuester and Coach Sylvester stood watch and kept Craig from interrupting when he tried to insist the girls should be inside greeting the guests there for Susan.

Later, when Quinn would look back on that day, she would wish that she had asked what Brittany had meant when she blamed herself. But at the time, all the friends could care about was that the blonde had now lost her mother and was effectively an orphan with a step father she hated.

xxxx

Santana refused to allow Craig to guilt her into leaving Brittany when her girlfriend was so distraught. He had tried to convince her to go home saying the blonde just needed time alone to cope. But Santana had refused to budge and had in fact told him to call her parents if he had a problem. She was either staying there with Brittany or the blonde was coming home with her.

Craig nodded and said nothing further. His blood was boiling but he knew that if he made a scene it would bring more unwanted attention to the situation. Luckily for him, Susan had the reputation of being a bit of a drunk in the last few months so hearing that she had fallen to her death had not come as much of a surprise to anyone in the neighborhood.

It seemed only Brittany knew the truth. Brittany and Craig. And he was anxious to catch the blonde alone to be certain she would keep quiet but Santana seemed intent on remaining by her girlfriend. Craig therefore simply tried to appear the supportive step father and friend to those observing the family.

Ashley was almost a permanent fixture in her best friend Sally's home since the death of her mother. With no other family to speak of, Craig and Brittany were all the girl had left. Brittany tried to be present for her little sister but she was clearly struggling on her own and Sally's mother had been kind enough to offer to let the girl stay with them.

Brittany was grateful, knowing that as long as Ashley was away from Craig she was safe. She was too tired to care when a week later, she found herself home alone with her step father for the first time since her mother's death.

Brittany dropped wearily onto her bed, hoping Craig hadn't heard her come in from Cheerio's practice. Santana was forced to go with her family to her grandmother's home and wouldn't be able to stay with Brittany as she had every other night since Susan's death.

The blonde drifted off to sleep and didn't hear the sound of her bedroom door creaking open until it was too late. She woke with a start when Craig slapped a hand over her mouth and growled.

"Didn't I warn you?" He hissed. "I distinctly remember telling you that something bad would happen if you ran your fucking mouth. You're just lucky it was your mother around and not your precious Santana or Ashley. I swear to God Brittany…"

She tried to wriggle out from underneath him but Craig was able to keep her pinned beneath him. "Your mother is dead because of you…you've been a bad girl Brittany. You have a lot to make up for."

Brittany whimpered and tried again to scratch at her step father's hand and force him off of her but he was too strong. Craig released her just long enough to deliver a stinging slap across the blonde's face.

"Stop fighting you little bitch!" he yelled, once again clamping a hand over her mouth. "I warned you…I told you what would happen. Who else have you told? Huh, who else have you fucking told?"

Brittany frantically shook her head back and forth, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes. Craig eased his hand from her mouth down to her throat, his tight grip causing her to gasp as her air supply was abruptly cut off.

"Did you tell Santana? Or that other pretty little blonde friend of yours? How about Ashley?"

"No." Brittany rasped as her vision began to cloud. "Nobody…Please!"

Craig sighed and loosened his grip. "I'm disappointed in you Brittany. I thought I made myself clear. We have an agreement and one of the rules is that you keep your mouth shut. You broke that rule and any time you break a rule there are consequences. Now that doesn't sound so unreasonable does it Brittany? I'm a reasonable man. You misbehaved and you have to be punished."

Brittany coughed and gulped air the best she could with Craig on top of her. The man brushed her hair back away from her forehead almost tenderly.

"Tell me Brittany…how should I punish you?" He asked softly. "I'm a good man sweetheart, I'll-I'll tell you what…I'll let you pick your own punishment. What do you think? I'll either bend Santana over your dad's desk downstairs in the den and fuck her until she can't stand or…you can convince me of just how sorry you are."

The blonde's eyes widened at the thought of her step father touching Santana. She didn't know what Craig would expect from her but she knew whatever it was, she would do it to keep him from hurting her girlfriend.

"Don't-don't touch Santana." Brittany whispered.

Craig chuckled and stroked her cheek gently with his thumb. "Somehow I just knew that would be your decision. You're so predictable Brittany. Predictable and dependable."

The blonde's brow furrowed. Craig laughed again and shifted slightly, his erection causing the blonde to whimper.

"What's wrong Britty? Those words too big for you to follow? It's a good thing you're an amazing fuck because you are not going to go far on your brains. But don't you worry; I'll always take care of you."

He leaned down and pressed their lips together and Brittany froze. He had never kissed her on the lips before. He had never tried to make their time together that personal. Tonight it seemed he had changed his mind and she grimaced at the thought of kissing anyone other than Santana. She immediately thought it was too late to be worried about that when she had in fact let someone other than Santana have his way with her in just about every way imaginable.

"Brittany," Craig said, interrupting her thoughts, "I suggest you start trying to convince me of how sorry you are instead of just laying there like a limp dead fish."

Craig reached and pinned both of her arms above her head and ground his hips down into the blonde's. With a smirk, he leaned back in and hungrily kissed her again. Brittany cried out in pain as he bit down roughly on her bottom lip.

"Damn it Brittany!" he hissed. "You either kiss me back or…or suck me off…your choice."

Brittany once again froze underneath the man. He was already panting heavily at the thought of the blonde going down on him and he almost frantically began to undo his pants.

Once he kicked his pants off, Craig reached and pulled Brittany into a seated position against the headboard, her head thudding against the wood painfully. "Come on, do it. Do it Brittany!"

Craig leaned up on his knees and the blonde cringed at the sight of her step father's erection in her face. He laughed as he leaned closer, the tip of his penis jabbing the side of her turned face.

"Brittany, do it or I'll call Santana to come over and when she gets here…"

"Ok!" Brittany cried. "Ok, just-just leave her alone."

Craig felt his breath catch as Brittany reached a shaking hand and wrapped it around the shaft. As she leaned forward and brought him to her mouth, Craig exhaled sharply. He fisted her hair in one hand and forcefully thrust himself deeper into her mouth, causing the blonde to gag.

"Fuck." He hissed. "That's so good baby…so good."

Brittany gagged again but Craig refused to relent. She clenched her eyes shut tightly and with tears streaming, tried to finish him as quickly as she could. When he finally came in her mouth, Brittany once again gagged but with his fierce grip on her head she was forced to swallow while he panted above her.

Craig finally dropped back onto his haunches and sighed in contentment. Brittany clamped a hand over her mouth and silently prayed he would finally leave her alone. When she opened her eyes, Craig was smirking at her.

"You're acting like that was the first time you've ever done that…and we both know that's not true. What about that little list you and Santana used to have?" He asked, once again reaching to brush her hair back from her forehead.

"I hate you." Brittany hissed, swatting his hand away.

Craig looked hurt for a moment before shaking his head and standing to his feet. "It's that attitude that is going to get someone else hurt young lady. You've already killed your mother…and your cat. Who's next?"

Brittany sat frozen until his footsteps faded down the stairs. As soon as she was certain he was gone, she bolted up from the bed and raced down the hall to the bathroom where she promptly retched and gagged into the toilet.

xxxx

Santana was pacing in her bedroom later that same evening. She had finally gotten home from her grandmother's house. Since coming out to her abuela, things had been tense at best. But Santana had relented and agreed to try again with the older woman only at the request of her mother.

But she was worried about Brittany. The blonde had seemed off for weeks now, even before her mother's death. Santana was certain there was something she was missing but try as she might, the brunette could not figure out what.

Brittany had sent a text a few minutes earlier just saying that she had to come over. Santana was hoping to finally get her girlfriend to talk to her, to finally tell her how she could help.

The Latina glanced out her bedroom window once more and still didn't see any sign of Brittany so she headed down the stairs to the kitchen where she knew her mother would be.

"Mama," Santana said as she leaned against the kitchen counter, "Is it ok if Britt comes over? She sent a text and seemed upset. I promise we'll leave the door open but can she please stay? She needs me mama."

Mrs. Lopez smiled sadly. She knew how close the two were; even before they started dating and knew it was killing her daughter to see Brittany in so much pain. "Of course mija. She can stay as long as she needs. That Craig man gives me the creeps…I wouldn't want to be stuck with him alone either."

Santana frowned. "What do you mean he gives you the creeps?"

"Well," Mrs. Lopez said, turning back to her task of unloading the dishwasher. "He was younger than Susan, just rushed in and married her…then Susan dies leaving him alone with both of her daughters and the house…that's the stuff out of a Lifetime movie. He just seems so…devious. And then after what you said about the poor cat…"

The sound of a soft knock at the front door kept either from saying anything further. Santana quickly moved to the door and pulled it open. "Britt?"

"Hi." The blonde replied softly. She was staring at the ground and fiddling with the hem of her baggy sweatshirt.

"Brittany, sweetheart, come on in." Mrs. Lopez said, rounding the corner as well. "I'm just putting some water on to make hot cocoa. I even have those little colored marshmallows you like."

"Thanks Mama Lo." Brittany replied, finally glancing up from the ground between her feet.

Santana smiled tenderly and reached a hand toward her girlfriend to pull her all the way inside the Lopez home. Brittany startled slightly at the touch but quickly recovered and linked their pinkies together.

Santana and Mrs. Lopez ushered the blonde into the kitchen, both falling over themselves to be certain she was comfortable. Mrs. Lopez even quickly set about making chocolate chip cookies for the girls as well.

"You're much too thin Brittany." She fussed. "You and Ashley need to come here for dinner at least twice a week. We've missed seeing you around here. Where is Ashley tonight by the way?"

"She's at her friend Sally's house. Mrs. Greene had been super nice and letting Ash stay there with them." The blonde said, finally relaxing in the safe environment.

Mrs. Lopez nodded and placed a steaming cup of cocoa in front of both girls. "Well, I'm glad Ashley has Sally. And you don't need to be there in that house all by yourself, you just come here anytime ok?"

Brittany couldn't stop the tears that threatened to fall as she nodded her thanks. Santana scooted closer and wrapped an arm around her girlfriend. Mrs. Lopez also stepped closer and rubbed the blonde's shoulder soothingly.

Later that night, Santana went to great lengths to be certain her girlfriend was comfortable. But as the two readied for bed, she could tell the blonde was nervous. When Brittany finally made eye contact, Santana smiled tenderly and lifted her pale hand to her lips, pressing a kiss to it.

Brittany willed her nerves to calm as she gazed into the face of the one person she knew she could trust completely. Those dark eyes she loved dearly were full of worry and Brittany found herself drowning. She threw herself toward Santana and held onto her tightly.

Santana held her just as tightly and gently eased them back until they were reclining on the bed, the blonde curled into her side.

"You're ok Britt." Santana whispered as the blonde cried. "I'm here baby…I got you."

Brittany still had tears streaming as she shifted and hovered over Santana. She desperately crashed their lips together.

"Can…can you just hold me?" the blonde whispered, finally breaking away.

Santana once again had the gut wrenching feeling that she was missing something but instead of address it, she decided to instead do as her girlfriend asked. "Yeah, baby, I can do that."

Santana wrapped her arms tightly around the trembling blonde and softly hummed until Brittany's breathing had evened out and she was asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N – Same warnings. Thanks for sticking with this; I really appreciate all the great feedback! I don't own anything you recognize. I'm moved in, just can't figure out the internet setup so I am once again sitting in a parking lot. Alright, this is the chapter people have been asking for; shit goes down…sort of. Sorry for any mistakes, they are all mine.

Chapter 4

Santana once again sighed in frustration as Brittany shied away from her touch. It had been more than two weeks since the blonde had shown up at the Lopez home and Santana had hoped that Brittany would finally open up to her. Unfortunately, her girlfriend was even more distant than she had been before that night.

"Britt," Santana whined. "Please, why won't you tell me what's wrong? How am I supposed to fix the problem when you won't tell me what the problem is? That is how this has always worked, you tell me the problem, I fix it."

Brittany wearily slumped into the chair next to Santana's bed. "There's no problem." She replied softly.

"Bullshit." Santana hissed. "Of course there is a problem when I can't even touch my own girlfriend. I know you've had a rough few months…I get that. I'm just asking you to talk to me. I love you Brittany but I feel like I'm losing you! I'm missing something…something is very wrong and you won't fucking tell me! I'm not a fucking mind reader Brittany!"

Brittany cowered slightly as Santana stood over her. Seeing the blonde so suddenly shaken made Santana's heart clench. "See, that's what I'm talking about."

Brittany finally looked up and saw tears welling in Santana's eyes. She immediately felt guilty for causing the other girl pain but she couldn't tell Santana what was happening, not after what Craig had shown he was capable of.

"I'm sorry." Brittany whispered. "I'm sorry Santana; I don't mean to hurt you. I don't!"

"So talk to me." Santana begged. "I want to be the supportive girlfriend and help you but I can't if you don't talk to me. Tell me what's wrong."

"I can't…I mean…I don't think…I just _can't_."

"So you admit something's wrong." Santana replied evenly, crossing her arms over her chest. "And you can't tell me…or won't tell me. Well then maybe you should go home until you can tell me or until you can at least tell me what the fuck I did wrong."

"What?" Brittany exclaimed. "You're kicking me out? Santana you haven't done-"

The brunette sighed and backed away, her arms still tightly crossed. "If you can't talk to me and I can't even hold you without you flinching then I don't know why you would even want to be here anyway. So…yeah, go home Brittany."

Brittany eyed Santana, hoping to see a flicker of indecisiveness but the brunette's face was the stony mask the blonde was so used to seeing. But she had never had that look directed at herself. She nodded and silently slipped from her girlfriend's bedroom.

As soon as the door shut behind her, Santana sighed and flopped down onto her bed miserably.

Brittany's shoulders were slumped as she slowly made her way home. She understood Santana was upset and she did not want to hurt her girlfriend but she knew that telling her would make Craig go after her or Ashley. As the blonde neared her home she sighed.

Ashley was once again with Sally so Brittany knew it would just be her home with Craig. He was not happy about her spending so much time away from the house but the blonde knew it didn't matter in the long run…he would continue to use and abuse her no matter what she did. She couldn't help but smirk at the thought that even Finn would be smart enough to figure that out.

Brittany considered heading to Quinn's house but knew Santana would be calling her to vent. As her house came into view, she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the empty driveway. Craig was out somewhere.

The blonde slipped inside and smiled slightly at the empty house. Her mind involuntarily drifted back to happier times she had spent in that house. She unfortunately no longer considered it a home, simply a house.

She sighed and her smile faded, knowing Craig would eventually return. Brittany weighed the option of locking her bedroom door since Ashley was clearly safe away from the house. But in the past, stunts like that had only angered him and Craig had found creative ways to punish the blonde. Plus she was simply growing too tired to care. Brittany knew she was fading and couldn't find the strength to care enough to fight it.

Instead, Brittany turned and eyed the liquor cabinet. She huffed in frustration at finding it locked. The cold look on Santana's face flashed in her mind and Brittany let loose a sob and swung a fist into the glass cabinet door. The glass cutting into her hand didn't even register as she pulled out a full bottle of brown liquid.

Half of the bottle was gone before Brittany even realized it. She stumbled up the stairs to her bedroom, the bottle still loosely in her grasp. Just to be completely certain Ashley was indeed out of the house; Brittany shuffled to her little sister's room and pushed the door open. Satisfied that the room was empty, the blonde exited and headed down the hallway to her own bedroom.

Brittany took another long pull on the bottle in her hand before dropping onto the bed. She rarely allowed herself to think back on just how fucked up her life had become. But as she glanced sideways at the photo of her and Santana smiling in their Cheerio's uniforms, Brittany felt the weight of all that she had lost pressing down on her for the second time just since arriving back at the house that night. Her parents were dead; she had lost count of how many times Craig had molested her, and now she had very likely lost Santana.

"I'm doin' this for her." Brittany whined to herself, as the room continued to spin. "She hasta know. Thas it, I'll just tell her that. Not the rest…"

Brittany immediately reached for her cell phone and tried her best to type out a message to Santana but with her vision swimming; she wasn't certain what she actually said. The phone dropped from her hand and Brittany fell backwards onto the bed. She was asleep in moments.

xxxx

The bed dipping slightly woke the blonde a short time later. Her head was still swimming and her vision faded in and out. Brittany pried her eyes open and willed the figure above her to stop spinning and come into focus. Dark hair and a warm smile swam in and out of focus in the dark room and the blonde reached her hand toward the figure but couldn't seem to make contact.

"Sanny…you came?"

Santana smiled and nodded, tenderly brushing her fingertips over Brittany's forehead and cheeks.

"San, I'm so…so, so sorry. I din' mean to…Love you." The blonde slurred.

Brittany felt Santana nod against her as the brunette began to trail kisses down the column of her slender neck. The blonde moaned involuntarily as her girlfriend squeezed one of her breasts roughly. Before Brittany could clear her head, she felt her pants being pushed down her legs.

"Slow…go slow San." She mumbled.

Santana hummed in response and began to stroke between the blonde's legs impatiently. Brittany wasn't able to form another protest before she felt her girlfriend push her fingers into her quickly.

The alcohol still flowing through her system left the blonde's body responding before her fuzzy mind felt prepared. Tension began to coil low in her belly as Santana pumped in and out of her roughly. Brittany clenched the sheets tightly and felt a moan rumble from deep within her as her orgasm washed over her quickly.

She registered Santana moaning above her and then felt an odd sensation between her legs. Suddenly Brittany realized she was being touched by not one hand but two and that what should have been Santana's fingers were still very much buried between her legs. Her tired mind tried to count up appendages, knowing there was one to many for the person above her to be Santana.

"No." she wailed, finally shaking her head and clearing her vision slightly.

Craig smirked down at her, still panting from his own orgasm. "I knew you'd finally come around Brittany. I've been trying to tell you that you just need to relax and let me make you moan."

She tried to push him off of her but the man just laughed. "So all it takes is a little liquor to get you off huh? I'll keep that in mind for the future. A little liquor and Santana role play."

"Get out…get out!" Brittany cried, realization finally settling in.

Craig continued to laugh at her as he readjusted himself. Brittany curled tightly into herself and turned her back to him as he finally stood from the bed.

"Good night Brittany…guess you can't play the innocent little victim anymore can you? Not when you came like a little whore from me fucking you."

Brittany buried her head in her pillow and sobbed, not even noticing the door close behind him.

xxxx

After that night with Craig, Brittany was even more numb and spacey than usual. She withdrew even further. She felt she had no more to give and that it had finally happened, she had finally completely lost herself. During school hours the blonde kept to herself and even stopped showing up for Glee Club at all. Each of the Glee members tried to reach out to her but she simply ignored their efforts. She did finally return, only to sit in the back row unmoving.

Santana and Quinn similarly tried to talk to the blonde but to them it seemed she had completely shut down. Santana was at a loss. She felt partly to blame for Brittany's current lack of interest after kicking her out but even after apologizing profusely, the blonde simply shrugged and continued to stare straight ahead. She allowed Santana to link their pinkies but it was clear everything had changed.

Santana often found herself pulling out her cell phone and trying to decipher the jumbled message Brittany had sent that night after leaving the brunette's home. None of the message made sense and Santana often found herself wondering if this had been the blonde's attempt at opening up to her. If this had been her one chance and she hadn't taken it. She had been tempted to run after Brittany that night and ask her what the message meant but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She had instead called Quinn.

Quinn was also at a loss as to how to help her friends. Santana was moody and in turn wreaking havoc on the poor students at McKinley without her blonde counterpart to keep her in check. And Brittany, well Quinn was certain Brittany was fading right before their very eyes.

One afternoon after Glee Club practice, Quinn found herself in the local park hoping to clear her head. She had been sitting watching two squirrels playing nearby when she noticed someone settle in next to her on the grass.

"Ashley?" the blonde said, surprised to see Brittany's little sister.

The girl smiled but still looked unhappy. Quinn sighed, thinking no child should ever have a reason to look so lost and sad. "Hey sweetie, are you here by yourself?"

Ashley shook her head and pointed to where a small redheaded girl was chatting with someone who was clearly her mother. Quinn nodded, recognizing the girl's friend Sally.

"You doing ok?" Quinn asked, realizing it was most likely a silly question but at a loss for anything else to say to the ten year old.

Ashley turned and gazed up at her with an eerily solemn expression on her young face. "You gotta help Brittany."

Quinn felt her heart clench. Apparently Brittany was in no better shape at home. "I want to sweetheart but I don't know how. What…do you know what's wrong with her? Do you know what I can do to help?"

Ashley nodded, her face still serious. The girl glanced around as if making sure no one else would overhear before leaning closer. "He hurts her." She whispered.

"What?" Quinn said, exhaling sharply. "Who? Who is hurting Brittany?"

"Craig. He hurts her in her bed at night…I can hear it. She cries and says he's hurting her but he does it anyway. I can't tell Sanny…she'll go all Lima Heights and get in trouble and Britty needs her. But I don't want him to hurt her anymore! I want him to stop and leave her alone! I told mama, I thought she could help. But now she's gone too…Please Quinn, will you help her?"

Quinn felt as if all the air had been squeezed from her lungs at Ashley's words. Suddenly it all made sense…Brittany had been withdrawn for months now, even before her mother died. And Santana had been complaining that her girlfriend seemed to shy away from her touch. Craig was abusing Brittany and no one had even noticed…except Ashley. Brittany was being molested…Brittany who was so easy to love and unfortunately too easy to also ignore. Quinn felt stupid for not noticing sooner.

"Will you help her?" the girl whispered again, breaking Quinn out of her thoughts. "Please? I don't want him to hurt her anymore! He hits her and everything."

Quinn nodded mutely before pulling the girl into a hug. "I will, I promise. Ashley, is Craig hurting you too? You can tell me, I promise I'll help you too."

The girl shook her head as she pulled away from Quinn. "No. Britty made me promise to lock my door every night. She sometimes even sneaks to my room to make sure I did. And she told me that if anyone came into my room to yell for her real loud. You're really gonna help her?"

Quinn nodded again and gently brushed the girl's sandy hair behind her ear. "I promise…I'll find a way to keep him from hurting her anymore."

Ashley finally gave a genuine smile as she hopped up from her spot next to Quinn. "Thanks Quinn. I hope Santana isn't mad I didn't tell her…she would end up hurting him and getting into trouble…I don't want her to get in trouble. But you'll help?"

The blonde nodded again and the girl threw herself at her and wrapped her arms tightly around Quinn once again. The older blonde sighed as she watched Ashley scamper away, a weight seemingly lifted.

Quinn's mind raced with questions and ways to help her friend. She agreed with Ashley that telling Santana until there was a set plan was out of the question. The Latina would be uncontrollable when she realized Craig had been abusing her girlfriend for months. She would kill him.

She then however thought back to Ashley hinting that she had told Susan about what was going on. If Susan found out and she then died suddenly, Quinn knew what that implied. Clearly Craig was capable of anything which made the blonde even more relieved that Santana hadn't been told yet. She would confront him and quite possibly pay the same price Susan did.

But someone had to be told, of that much Quinn was certain. And suddenly, she knew who to go to. The blonde jumped from her spot and rushed back to her car, not stopping until she pulled up at her destination.

She rushed to the door and knocked, her hand shaking.

"Q." Sue Sylvester said as she opened the door. "How dare you interrupt me in my home while I'm engaged in my nightly routine of polishing my trophies? This had better be worthy of my time."

"Coach, I need your help…Brittany's in trouble."

Sue narrowed her eyes at the usually calm and composed girl looking so worried in front of her. She clenched her jaw and stepped back from the doorway, allowing Quinn entrance.

xxxx

Quinn timidly knocked on the Lopez door, certain she was in for a difficult night. She had left Coach Sylvester's with a plan of action set but she knew that if Santana found out from anyone other than herself and wasn't told immediately, the Latina would likely murder anyone in her path…Quinn specifically for keeping it from her.

Mrs. Lopez answered the door and ushered Quinn inside with a smile.

"Quinn, come on in, so nice to see you. Hopefully you can cheer our Santanita up…she's been pretty upset since her fight with Brittany…poor things the both of them. I'm sure they'll work it out. Go on up sweetie."

Quinn nodded sadly, unsure of what to say. Mrs. Lopez directed her to where Santana had been holed up in her room. The blonde knocked softly and slipped into the room, keeping a firm hold on the doorknob behind her as she closed herself in the room with the brunette.

"What do you want?" Santana muttered with barely a glance up from her homework.

"Santana," Quinn replied with a sigh, "we need to talk."

"'Bout what."

Quinn remained by the door, fully expecting to have to block the exit when Santana was told of the situation. "I have to tell you something and you're not going to like it…something bad."

"Jesus Christ, did you get knocked up again?" Santana replied scowling, finally looking up from her homework. "And please don't tell me it's actually Finn's this time…that I don't think I could take."

Quinn cringed but shook her head. "No…it's about Brittany."

Santana narrowed her eyes at the blonde in front of her, still scowling. "What about her?"

The blonde swallowed thickly and tightened her grip on the doorknob. "She's…Craig, he's been…he's been abusing her."

Santana's face morphed from confusion to anger in seconds. She clenched her jaw and slowly stood to her feet and Quinn thought she suddenly resembled a panther stalking its prey. "What do you mean…abusing her? What the fuck are you talking about?" she asked lowly.

"It's why she's been so out of it lately!" Quinn exclaimed abruptly. "Ashley told me today, he's been…you know…molesting her…for months now apparently."

The color drained from Santana's face as she pieced together the puzzle in her own mind. She thought back to her own encounters with her girlfriend and suddenly felt like both punching a hole through the wall and vomiting on the spot.

With a snarl, Santana rushed toward the door and tried to pry Quinn away from where she was perched, blocking her exit.

"Get the fuck out of my way!" Santana bellowed. "That fucker doesn't get to touch Brittany and live to tell about it! I'm going to fucking kill him…get out of my way!"

Quinn stood her ground and braced herself against the door, even as Santana tried to forcefully shove her out of the way. "No!" she yelled, "Santana stop! You can't go storming over there!"

"And why the fuck not?" Santana replied with a grunt, still trying to shove the blonde out of her way. "He's hurting Brittany…he dies…easy as that."

"No! What happens when you go over there and tip him off that we know what's going on? He's her legal guardian…he can just take off with her and we never see her again. He can just disappear with her…or Ashley…is that what you want? Santana please, Coach Sylvester is going to help her I swear! We're going to get her out of there tomorrow!"

Santana grunted again in frustration when she was unable to move the taller girl out of her way. "Fuck!" she screamed. "You want to just leave Brittany there with him? That's fucking messed up Quinn! We can't just leave her there!"

"Tomorrow," The blonde insisted, "tomorrow we will get her away from him…we just can't tip him off tonight because he could take off and we may never see her again. Please, Santana, we have a plan!"

"A plan," Santana spat sarcastically, "you have a plan for tomorrow while tonight she's being fucked by that asshole? Is that what you're saying?"

Quinn cringed, knowing Santana's anger was understandable. She hated the thought of Brittany having to spend one more night with Craig as well. But they could only call the police and make a report; nothing definitive would come from it at that time of night. Unless an officer went out to check on the situation which would then clue Craig in that they were on to him.

And if they stormed over there demanding Brittany be handed over to them, Craig could technically call the police on them himself since legally he was now her father. It was risky no matter which route they went.

"It's terrible, I know." Quinn tried to reason. "But think long term…we get her away from him tomorrow and she never has to see him again. We screw this up and he can take off with her and Ashley and then _we_ never see _them_ again. Sure she'll be 18 soon but do you really think she would leave Ashley with him? Besides…apparently Susan found out and now she's dead. We have to be careful."

Santana stopped finally, her body still tense. "So you're saying he killed Susan? Oh God. Quinn he could kill Brittany, we have to fucking get her out of there!"

"I don't know that for sure." Quinn responded. "Ashley said she told her…I can only assume Susan would try to protect Brittany after that…and now she's dead. So Craig is clearly capable of anything. Which is why we need to stick to Coach's plan."

"I hate this. I hate leaving her alone over there, knowing what I know. I'm going over there. I won't say anything but I'll at least be there so he can't hurt her tonight."

"Coach said we shouldn't do anything out of the ordinary." Quinn replied sadly. "And you spending the night over there would be out of the ordinary wouldn't it? You haven't been there in weeks. Any little thing could tip him off, even if Brittany herself seems different…which is why you can't say anything to her and you can't go over there tonight. As horrible as it is, we have to wait until tomorrow."

"This fucking sucks." Santana hissed.

Quinn nodded, agreeing completely.

"Tomorrow Santana." The blonde said resolutely. "Tomorrow we'll get her out of there."


	5. Chapter 5

A/N – Ok, we are in the home stretch. For sure one more chapter after this one, possibly two if I do an epilogue. Once again, I don't own anything you recognize. Thanks so much for all the love, you guys are awesome! All mistakes are mine...

Chapter 5

Quinn stayed with Santana that night but neither found sleep easily. They rose early, wanting to beat the blonde to the choir room for their early morning Glee practice. Santana snuck and sent a quick text to Brittany when she hoped Craig would have already left for work.

_It ends today baby. I love you and I'm going to protect you._

Quinn eyed Santana, one brow arched as the brunette put her phone away. Santana narrowed her eyes and stared right back. "Who knows what the fuck he did to her last night…she has to come to school today so we can get her out of there…she _has_ to and…maybe just knowing I still love her will help keep her going. It has to still mean something."

The blonde's heart clenched at the lost look on Santana's face. She knew she was one of the select few who got to see the vulnerable side of the Latina. And Quinn also knew this whole situation was killing both of her friends.

"It does." Quinn whispered. "Today Santana. Today we're going to get her out of there."

"What if she hates me?" Santana asked, her voice shaking.

Quinn stopped abruptly and gave the brunette a questioning look. "Why would she hate you Santana?"

The smaller girl clenched her jaw and fought to keep tears from her eyes. "I didn't tell you…she was here one night and I was such a bitch and stubborn. She wouldn't tell me what was going on and I made her leave. I made her go home to that…she should hate me."

Quinn frowned and stepped closer to her friend. "Santana, you had no idea. None of us did. Apparently she didn't want anyone to know or was too afraid to tell us. So you can't beat yourself up for something you didn't know about. She doesn't hate you. She's going to be screwed up…no doubt. But let's not worry about that until we get her out of there ok? And we're getting her out of there today."

Santana nodded tersely and shouldered her bag before the two headed out to school.

xxxx

When Brittany read the text from Santana, she felt her breath catch. Craig had been grunting on top of her for an early morning tryst when the phone chirped with a text but he didn't seem to notice. It wasn't until he had slipped from her room once again that Brittany reached over and picked up her phone.

_It ends today baby. I love you and I'm going to protect you._

The blonde's brow furrowed in confusion. How could Santana possibly know? Was this even about Craig or was that giant on the wrestling team threatening to slushy her again for that slingshot incident? She was too tired to think on it.

Brittany sighed and dragged herself from the bed toward the bathroom. She showered quickly, her body already aching with exhaustion. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept more than a few hours.

Brittany was the last one to shuffle into the choir room, her head down. She stopped moving when a pair of white standard issue Cheerio tennis shoes attached to tan legs came directly into her line of sight.

She raised her head and saw Santana gazing up at her with teary eyes. The brunette tried to smile and extended her pinky. Her girlfriend's text from that morning popped into Brittany's mind and she reached to take the offered pinky in her own.

"Hey B." Santana said softly. "Coach needs to see us in her office for an emergency meeting."

Brittany glanced over Santana's shoulder to where Quinn was also standing, an unreadable expression on her face. Everyone else in the room seemed to be carrying on as normal, Tina and Mike dancing and laughing on one side, Kurt and Mercedes chatting about the latest gossip, Rachel and Finn were cuddled on the front row.

Nothing seemed too out of the ordinary other than Santana and Quinn both staring at her so Brittany nodded and allowed the brunette to lead her out of the room, Quinn falling into step on her other side.

The three slipped into Sue's office and Quinn softly shut the door behind them. Sue glanced up as they entered and imperceptibly flipped a switch underneath her desk, turning on the audio and video recording system she had rigged in her office years ago. You could never be too careful.

"Ladies," she said, looking serious. "Take a seat."

The three took their chairs and an awkward silence settled over the group. The two friends turned their eyes to Brittany, just waiting for the ball to drop. Finally the blonde couldn't take the tension anymore.

"Did Ashley die?" Brittany blurted, her face blank as was her usual defense mechanism. "That keeps happening and every time it does you call me to your office."

Sue sighed and removed her glasses and dropped them onto the table in front of her. "No, kiddo, your sister is just fine. No one died. But we do know what's been going on at home. We know everything Brittany."

Brittany tensed but her face remained blank. Santana however could see her blue eyes widen slightly and her breath immediately became shallow. She reached and took the blonde's hand in her own.

"It's ok Brittany." Santana said softly. "You're safe now…he's not going to touch you again. I swear Britt!"

Sue cleared her throat and Santana fell silent, knowing she was close to losing control. And that couldn't happen. They had to remain calm and controlled…strong for Brittany. Quinn had so far remained silent but finally spoke up.

"Britt, Ashley told me. She's worried about you…we all are. But more importantly, she begged me to do something to stop him. To keep him from hurting you anymore."

"I don't…I don't know what you're talking about!" Brittany insisted, nervously clenching her fists in her lap. "You're wrong…nothing is wrong…Craig's not-"

"No one said anything about Craig Brittany." Sue interrupted, folding her hands on her desk. "You just admitted that something's going on with Craig yourself right there Brittany by being the first to bring up his name. We are here to help you. We can and will keep him away from you if you let us help you."

Brittany shook her head almost frantically and pulled her lips between her teeth, a sign that she was not talking.

"Brittany." Santana sighed. "You don't have to be scared; we're going to protect you. We're not going to let him near you again I promise!"

"No!" Brittany cried, jumping to her feet suddenly. "You-you don't know…you _can't_ know-"

The blonde's protests died on her lips as Emma Pillsbury quietly slipped into the office, hand in hand with Ashley. The counselor had a sad smile on her face while Ashley's bottom lip was already trembling.

"Tell them Britty." The girl whimpered. "Please! I don't want him to hurt you again, _please_ Brittany! You gotta be ok. You just gotta be! I love you! He's hurting you and I don't want him to anymore!"

The girl was crying openly by this point and she rushed to her sister and threw her arms around her hips and buried her head in Brittany's stomach sobbing. The taller blonde finally lifted her arms from where they were dangling limply at her sides and wrapped them around the sobbing girl. She stroked Ashley's hair gently with trembling hands.

"Ok." Brittany whispered. "Ok. D-don't cry Ash…don't cry. Please don't cry; everything's ok."

Brittany gently pried her sister away and knelt in front of her. She brushed sandy blonde hair away from Ashley's face and thumbed her tears as she cupped her cheeks. "Don't cry. I'm ok…I'll be ok."

"You promise?" Ashley whimpered.

Brittany nodded, her own tears beginning to sting her eyes. "I promise. But I want you go with Miss Pillsbury ok? She has some super cool pamphlets and cleaning supplies she can show you while I talk to Coach with Sanny and Quinn."

Brittany glanced to where Emma was standing by the door, wringing her hands. "Is that ok? She…I don't want her to hear anymore of…this. She's heard enough."

Tears finally escaped from Brittany's eyes and her hands were shaking as she continued to stroke Ashley's hair. Miss Pillsbury nodded and stepped closer, reaching a hand to the girl. Ashley looked back over her shoulder sadly as she was led away from Brittany, who was now trying to brush away her own tears and smile back at her little sister encouragingly.

Once the door finally shut behind them, Brittany's chin dropped to her chest and her tears began to flow again. She finally allowed Santana to pull her back up into the plastic chair across from Sue's desk. Quinn and Santana both scooted their own chairs as close as possible to offer any small amount of comfort they could.

"Ok kiddo." Sue said softly. "We need you to talk to us. I know this is hard and the last thing you want to do is talk about what Craig did to you but…to keep you safe, we need to actually hear you say what happened."

Santana pulled Brittany's hand into her lap and squeezed. Quinn timidly dropped her own hand to the blonde's other forearm where she was clenching the arm of the chair, her knuckles white from the strain.

"Um…Craig…he made me do things with him…sex things." Brittany finally admitted, her gaze steadfast on the floor in front of her. "I didn't want to and he made me. He came into my bedroom and made me do things and I tried to stop him and it really hurt but…he made me."

As her girlfriend ended in a rush, Santana could feel her own body beginning to tremble, both from rage at what Craig had done and from trying to control her own tears of sorrow at hearing Brittany finally admit to what was happening.

Sue nodded sadly. "How long has this been going on Brittany?"

"Since before my mom died." The blonde whispered. "I think he killed her. She asked me and I told her…I told her what he was doing and she said she was going to kick him out but…that's the night she fell. But Lord Tubbington wouldn't trip her! He knew better! I taught him stair safety! Craig did it, I know he did it!"

"And I am personally going to make sure the police look into that." Sue replied firmly. "You have my word Brittany. Now…when was the last time Craig came into your room?"

Brittany began to kick her foot nervously, still refusing to make eye contact with anyone in the room. "Last night…and this morning." She replied quietly.

Had they not all been straining to hear her answer they would have missed it. Santana clenched her free hand into a fist and a low growl escaped her throat. Brittany's eyes darted sideways toward the brunette quickly before returning to the spot between her feet. Quinn had clamped her free hand over her mouth to keep from crying out.

"You're doing just great kiddo." Sue said, hoping to encourage all three girls in front of her. "Can you tell us what kind of things Craig made you do? I know you don't want to…I know this is just awful…but the more you can tell us the better."

"Everything." Brittany replied dully, finally meeting her coach's gaze. Sue shuddered at the empty look in those usually bright blue eyes. "He touched me, he fucked me, he went down on me, he made me go down on him…everything. And I didn't want any of it I swear! But…"

"But what Brittany?" Santana asked, her voice pained.

Brittany's bottom lip trembled. "But…I think I cheated once. I didn't mean to I swear!…I'm so, so sorry Santana. But I was drunk and he let me think he was you and I…he said that meant I wanted it so that I cheated. I guess I cheated on you."

"Oh God." Santana moaned. She gingerly reached and lifted Brittany's chin and forced her to look at her. "No baby. You didn't cheat. You didn't want it; he hurt you. Even that night he tricked you. It doesn't matter how your body reacted, you didn't cheat!"

Brittany felt tears stinging her eyes again as Santana so tenderly stroked her cheek with her thumb. "I'm sorry." She said again. "I know I hurt you and didn't talk to you but I couldn't. I just couldn't! He said he'd hurt you or Ashley if I told anyone. And then I told my mom and she died so I just couldn't! Please don't be mad at me anymore, please."

Santana shook her head and scooted closer, still keeping one hand on Brittany's cheek. "No. No Britt, I'm not mad at you. I understand now. I understand why you couldn't tell me and I'm not mad at you. You should be mad at me! I made you leave…I sent you back home to him and I am so, so sorry Britt. Please, please forgive me, I'm so sorry!"

"You didn't know." Brittany replied, her voice still trembling. "I didn't tell you so how were you supposed to know?"

Santana sighed and raised the blonde's hand to her lips and kissed it tenderly. "I should have figured it out. I should have-God I don't know! But everything is going to be fine now I promise. We're here to take care of you…we all love you and we're not going to let him hurt you anymore. I love you Brittany."

Brittany raised a shaking hand and wrapped her fingers around the wrist of Santana's hand still cupping her cheek. "I love you too." She whispered. "Please…please don't let him hurt me anymore. Please!"

Brittany collapsed into Santana's arms, much like she did her mother's, and sobbed. The brunette pulled the blonde closer and held her tightly, her own tears finally leaking as well. Quinn and Coach Sylvester sat, each observing quietly, afraid to interrupt the tender moment between the two girls. Quinn clenched her jaw, hoping to keep herself from crying.

When Brittany had finally collected herself enough to be able to comprehend what Sue was saying, the older woman told her that she was going straight to a good friend who just happened to be the Captain of the Lima Police Department. Brittany looked like she would be sick at the thought of having to relive her story again that day when Sue told her the police would want to talk to her.

Sue in turn just smiled sympathetically and pointed to the corner of the room where a small camera was hidden. "This entire conversation has been recorded for just that reason Brittany. I'm going to show this tape to the police captain and they will go out and arrest that bastard today. Of course they'll have to talk to you again but not today. Today, you girls are going to get out of here and go relax, have fun, and eat whatever you want…on me. Tomorrow too."

Brittany seemed to relax realizing she would not be forced to talk to a detective and rehash all she had been through twice in one day. "Ashley?" she asked suddenly. "She can't go home either…he'll-he said he'd-"

"Don't you worry about that Brittany." Sue said quickly. "I've already had a chat with her buddy Sally's mom and they are on their way to Disney World as we speak…again on me. We thought it best she not be around when Craig is arrested in case there's any media involved. Ashley is going to be just fine. Just like you are."

Brittany nodded. "Thank you."

Sue smiled and returned the nod. "Go on, get out of here. Quinn has the Cheerio's private credit card and you are to go have a good day. And that's an order."

Santana gently pulled Brittany to her feet. Quinn stepped closer and dropped her hand to the taller blonde's shoulder as well. The three huddled close together as they exited the office and made their way back out to the parking lot.

"Well Britt, you heard Coach, what do you want to do today?" Quinn asked softly.

Brittany sighed and looked up into the bright blue sky over her head. Even with the beautiful day all she felt was bone deep exhaustion. "Sleep." She mumbled tiredly. "I just wanna sleep without him waking me up."

Santana and Quinn shared a look, both immediately understanding the exhaustion the blonde felt, both from Craig keeping her up at night and from the toll of sharing her story that morning.

"Of course Britt." Santana replied, her hand still holding tightly to the blonde's. "My house is empty and you know my bed is big enough for us to all get our cuddle on. That sounds like just what we need."

Brittany felt a slight smile tugging at her lips at the thought. They quickly hopped into Santana's car with Quinn in the driver's seat and headed to the brunette's home. Both of her parents were out so the girls had the house to themselves.

"What do you say we crash and then when we wake up we take advantage of our free day and order so much food our stomachs explode?" Santana asked, still holding onto Brittany's hand tightly. She felt an intense need to make sure the blonde was safe and comfortable, wanting to cater to her every whim. Not to mention an intense need to not let her girlfriend out of her sight.

"Can we order pizza and sushi both?" Brittany asked, her eyes drifting from one to the other.

Quinn almost cringed at the combination but nodded. "Of course B! We've got the credit card so we can get anything you want. We can even go rent every Disney movie ever made if you want."

Santana smiled at the suggestion. "That's a great idea."

Brittany also smiled but shifted nervously on her feet. Quinn and Santana exchanged another look before the brunette squeezed the blonde's hand gently.

"You don't have to be scared anymore Britt. You're going to sleep and we're going to watch over you to make sure nothing hurts you. We'll wake you up if you have a nightmare, we'll cuddle all day with you if you want. We'll even rent one of those huge blow up bouncy castles you love if you want. But you're safe Brittany; you're safe here with us."

Quinn nodded in agreement and reached for Brittany's free hand. The taller blonde finally seemed to relax and nodded. The three then moved to Santana's bedroom and then changed into comfortable clothes and huddled in the middle of the bed watching cartoons until Brittany was finally sleeping peacefully.

xxxx

Brittany slept until well after the school day ended. Quinn and Santana remained in the bed with her, leaving never an option. A few times during her slumber, the blonde had begun to whimper and seemed to be struggling under unpleasant dreams but Santana would speak lowly into her ear and gently stroke her face while Quinn curled into her free side and Brittany eventually settled back into peaceful sleep.

When she finally opened her eyes and stretched it was late in the evening. She rubbed her eyes and sighed as her vision focused and settled on her friends eyeing her.

"So…this wasn't like that dream where the sun was made of cheese and I ate it and then the world was dark and mad at me? Today was real?"

Santana nodded timidly as she reached and took Brittany's hand in her own. "Yeah Britt today was real. But I'm so proud of you! You were so brave today."

Brittany shrugged. Quinn and Santana shared a worried look on either side of the blonde.

"Britt," Quinn said timidly, "Coach Sue called a while ago…do you want to talk about that or just wait until tomorrow? It's completely up to you…whatever you want to do."

Brittany scratched her nose and shrugged. "What did she say?"

Santana scooted closer to the blonde and eyed her intently, waiting for her reaction. "Coach said her detective friend viewed the tape from this morning and they went right out after him and arrested him…He's in jail Britt. Craig is in jail. They charged him for what he did to you and they're looking into a murder charge for your mom."

The blonde blinked but stared ahead, almost unseeing.

"He's gone Brittany." Quinn tried to explain. "He won't hurt you again."

"It's too late." Brittany replied evenly. "I think I'm already gone…I'm not even sure where I went or how to come back."

"Baby don't say that!" Santana said softly. "You're not…you're going to get through this. We're going to help you. You can live here with me and my Papí will find the best therapist for you and Ashley, it's all gonna be ok Britt. You can't give up now that you're safe. Please."

Quinn nodded and reached for Brittany's hand as well. "Santana's right. It can't get any worse than what you've been through; it just has to get better."

Brittany sighed again. "Do you think I could call Ashley?"

"Of course." Santana immediately replied. "Sally's mom has called a few times to check on you. I know Ash will be excited to talk to you."

Brittany held Santana's hand tightly as she waited for Ashley to come on the line.

"Britty?"

At the sound of her sister's voice, Brittany's body relaxed and she almost smiled. "Hey Ashley! How's-how's my girl?"

The two chatted for a few minutes until Brittany began to tear up again and her friends realized Ashley must have been asking about Craig and if her big sister was ok.

"Yep I am. Don't you worry about me ok? I'm gonna be just fine…What? No, Quinn is fine sweetie why…oh. No Ashley, mom didn't die because you told her to talk to me about Craig so Quinn won't either…I promise. Nope, I promise…Ok, I want you to have fun ok? Tell Goofy to call me…I love you."

Brittany disconnected the line and slid further down into the covers of the bed as if to hide from the world. Santana and Quinn both instinctively curled closer to the girl between them.

"She thinks it's her fault mom died. She told mom to talk to me and since she told you what was going on too she's worried about you." Brittany said with a glance toward Quinn. "She thinks you'll be in trouble now too but you won't…right?"

Quinn smiled and shook her head as she tucked Brittany's hair behind her ear. "Craig is the one in trouble Britt. And even if I thought he could hurt me, I'd still do anything to make sure you got out of there. Santana and I will do anything to make sure you and Ashley are safe. We're the unholy trinity…and a half."

Brittany's lip quirked at Quinn's last statement and when Santana once again cuddled closer, she turned and pressed a kiss into her dark hair.

"It was super nice of Coach to send them to Disney World." Brittany said softly. "I've always wanted to go…"

"Then we will, the three of us…Ashley too if she wants to go back." Santana replied quickly. "It'll be awesome. We can look into going over spring break if you want. If Coach won't hand over the credit card again we'll just use my Papí's."

"Speaking of Coach's card…we're supposed to be living it up tonight and tomorrow." Quinn said. "And I for one could eat a whole bacon lover's pizza myself right about now."

The three shuffled down the stairs for an evening of overeating and relaxing. When Mrs. Lopez came home later that night she smiled at the sight of the three girls all together again in her living room. It reminded her of when they were kids and would have sleepovers and they would beg her to let them make s'mores in the backyard.

"Hello girls." Mrs. Lopez greeted. "Santana, I see you found your Papí's credit card yet again."

When Santana didn't reply with a snarky comment at her teasing, Mrs. Lopez's smile faded. Santana on the other hand glanced at her friends and slowly stood to her feet.

"Britt, is it ok if I talk to my mom about everything?" she asked. "She'll need to know why you're moving in with us."

Quinn reached and took the taller blonde's hand in her own as Brittany stared intently at the floor in front of her. She nodded slightly and Mrs. Lopez's frown deepened.

"Santana? What's going on?"

Santana looked back to Brittany one final time before she and her mother slipped out of the room to the kitchen where they could speak privately.

xxxx

When the two returned to the blondes, Mrs. Lopez strode right to Brittany and took the seat next to her on the couch. She pulled the blonde into her arms and held her tightly.

"Mija, you are welcome here with us…you're family. And anything you need, _anything_, you will have it."

Santana's eyes were red rimmed and she was still sniffling slightly when she took her mother's spot on the couch after the woman reluctantly released Brittany. The three then snuggled back under blankets on the couch as the Disney movie marathon continued.

"Mama?" Santana finally called a while later. "Can we make s'mores in the backyard?"

Mrs. Lopez chuckled and nodded, happy some things could remain the same.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N – I've decided there will be two more chapters after this one. Chapter 8 will be the epilogue. I just can't end a story on chapter 7. It's asymmetrical or something. This chapter warrants a warning as well but I don't want to give anything away. Like I said at the start, I've been in a mood.

Chapter 6

The friends returned to school after taking another full day off. Quinn had returned the credit card to Sue's office and was just getting her books out of her locker when Mercedes and Kurt approached from the side.

"Is it true?" Kurt asked softly. "Is what they're saying about Brittany true?"

Quinn sighed, sad that the news had already spread but not surprised. "Well I suppose that depends on what they're saying."

"Girl, did her step dad really do all those things to her?" Mercedes finally asked. "Because that is sick and messed up."

Quinn turned and softly shut her locker, smiling sadly at her friends. "Yeah, it's true. He was arrested though so everything is going to be fine. She'll be fine."

"That poor thing." Mercedes muttered. "I just can't imagine. She's already been through so much."

Quinn nodded, agreeing with Mercedes but not sure of what to add. She didn't want to divulge too much information. It was Brittany's story to tell after all.

"How did you manage to keep Satan from sacrificing Craig on a flaming altar?" Kurt asked trying to lighten the mood. "She must have been about ready to blow her weave."

"I bet she's plotting ways to get into that jail cell and have even just two minutes alone with him." Mercedes replied. "Satan doesn't mess. Where is she anyway? Off with Puck stealing supplies to break into the jail?"

"Actually," Quinn said, their well meaning joking rubbing her wrong. "She's with Brittany, where she's been since she found out what was going on. She's been taking care of Britt nonstop. Would she like to rip him limb from limb, of course…I would too. But right now, we're just trying to keep Brittany going because she's in a bad place right now and if she didn't have 'Satan' as you call her, I don't think she'd be able to recover from this."

Kurt and Mercedes exchanged a look as Quinn brushed past them. The blonde couldn't help but think it was going to be a long day.

xxxx

Santana held Brittany's hand tightly as they stepped back into the school after their two days out. The blonde kept her head lowered and refused to make eye contact with anyone. She could feel eyes on her and could hear whispers following them.

Lima was a small town and word traveled fast.

Santana squeezed her hand and scowled at everyone standing around staring at them. She at least appreciated that no one came up to them to directly question Brittany. Jacob Ben Israel had the good sense to keep out of sight after posting about the rumor on his blog. Santana had already called dibs on him when she finally set eyes on him.

The day carried on much the same, stares and whispers. Santana and Brittany stayed together all day, even opting to skip classes they didn't share together to sit quietly in the library or gym. Miss Pillsbury had also offered her office and said that she wanted to meet with Brittany once a day for a while until Dr. Lopez was able to get her set up with a therapist.

Brittany kept quiet mostly. She hadn't said any more about Craig or the abuse she had suffered and Santana was afraid to push. She instead opted to remain by her side, letting Brittany cling to her pinky or even her arm if she was feeling particularly stressed. Santana fought to swallow her own guilt at not rescuing Brittany sooner but having the blonde clearly wanting her to remain close by helped the brunette keep from breaking down. She was determined to be there for her girlfriend in any way she could, even if it meant just sitting quietly and holding her hand while they skipped class.

It was only when the two stepped into Glee at the end of the day that they feared they would finally be forced to answer questions. Brittany froze in the doorway when all eyes fell on her. Even Rachel was silent.

"I don't want to sing about it." Brittany said quietly, her eyes darting quickly to the floor.

Santana once again squeezed her hand. "We can leave right now. We don't have to stay Britt."

The blonde seemed to be mulling the option over in her head when Tina stepped closer almost timidly. "Brittany," she said softly, "will you sit next to me? I'm working a new dress design and I was hoping you could take a look and let me know what you think. I'm not sure if I should change the sleeves or shorten the skirt."

Brittany finally raised her eyes and nodded at Tina's soft smile. "Probably shorten it…you have awesome legs."

Tina's smile widened and Santana scowled slightly at hearing her girlfriend complement another girl. Even so, the brunette relaxed slightly.

"Come on B, let's sit."

Brittany nodded again and let Santana and Tina lead her to seats that were open in the middle of the risers. Quinn smiled and waved and they passed her and took their seats in the row directly behind her. Brittany gave the head Cheerio's short hair a gentle tug as she passed.

Santana breathed a sigh of relief when nothing out of the ordinary occurred during the rest of the glee club meeting. No one treated the blonde differently and by the end of the hour Brittany even seemed to be relaxed.

xxxx

Dr. and Mrs. Lopez welcomed Brittany into their home with no questions. Dr. Lopez was rarely home due to his shifts at the hospital so making certain Brittany was functioning and coping with everything fell to Santana and her mother.

Ashley was still at Disney World with Sally and her family but she called every day to talk to her sister. Brittany seemed to be more like her usual, happy self when chatting with the younger girl. Ashley in turn was thrilled to have a fresh ear to talk to about all the day's happenings.

A few days after Craig was arrested, Brittany sighed in frustration and dropped onto the brunette's bed as they were getting ready for school.

"What's wrong baby?" Santana asked stepping closer. "What do you need?"

"All my stuff." The blonde mumbled. "I should have brought everything with me when we left…stupid. I just left everything there! I'm so stupid."

Santana frowned and moved to sit next to her girlfriend. "Brittany, I have never let you talk about yourself that way and I sure as hell am not going to start now. Stop saying that; you're not stupid. We didn't give you a chance to go back for your things so you didn't leave them. What do you need? If I don't have it I'll go buy it for you."

Brittany sighed and shrugged. "Just…everything. All my things are at my house. Living here with you is awesome but nothing is mine. And if you go buy stuff for me…it's still not really mine. Besides, I bet you couldn't find another rubber ducky toothbrush holder anyway. Or…my scrapbook my mom made me."

"Ok." Santana replied firmly. "So just make a list of what you want and I'll swing by your house today after my make up exam."

Santana had completely forgotten about her calculus test she missed on the day she was out with Brittany. Coach Sylvester had pulled strings and convinced her teacher to allow the Latina to take the test one day after school.

Brittany finally smiled slightly. "You don't have to do that. It's taco Tuesday. You don't want to be late for dinner. Maybe…maybe Quinn would go with me right after school and she could stay over and have tacos with us."

Santana wrapped her arm around Brittany's shoulder and pulled her closer to press a kiss to her temple. "Are you sure you want to go back in there so soon? Maybe we can go this weekend or really, I don't mind, I'll go after my test."

"No." Brittany replied. "I have to go. And Quinn will be babysitting me after school anyway since you'll be taking your test. I want to get my own things…not that your stuff isn't awesome but-"

"I understand Britt." Santana cut in. "I want you to feel at home here and if you need your own things to do that then I'm all for it. I would feel better if you'd wait and let me go with you but…"

Brittany looked up finally and met Santana's dark brown eyes and smiled again. "I know you want to come because you're awesome. You've been great Santana…I don't think I could get through this without you. But…you can't be here every second. So, I'll see if Quinn will go with me right after school and then we'll help Mama Lo fix her super awesome tacos for when you get home from acing your test."

Santana smiled shyly but shook her head. "You're wrong ya know. You're amazing and so strong. You would be just fine without me. I wish…I just wish I could have-"

"Stop." Brittany interrupted. "Santana you have to stop. You didn't know because I didn't want you to. It makes me sad that you think you should have done something else when you couldn't have. And let's face it…I'm sad enough."

Santana glanced up at the gentle nudge from her girlfriend. The sight of a slight glint to those blue eyes left Santana's breath catching in her throat. She briefly glimpsed the old Brittany, mischievous and happy. The brunette chuckled at Brittany's teasing and nodded with a sigh.

"Ok, I'll let it go for now." Santana replied. "But just because I don't want you to be sad."

"Santana?" Brittany asked softly after a few seconds of silence between them.

The brunette turned and eyed her girlfriend curiously. "Yeah babe?"

Brittany glanced back up and met Santana's eye again. Santana couldn't help but think the blonde seemed so young and fragile. It almost broke her heart.

"Even with all this bad stuff…I just…I love you. I never stopped, ever. And you're my lobster and I really wanna get better so we can be us again. I love you." The blonde ended with a shrug.

Santana smiled as tears began to prick at her eyes. "I love you too Brittany S. Pierce. And we are going be together forever."

"Well duh." The blonde replied, finally relaxing and smiling again. "That's why you're my lobster…lobsters mate for life."

The Latina smiled again. She took a chance and scooted even closer to Brittany and pulled her in for a hug. The blonde had not allowed much physical contact for weeks, even after moving into the Lopez home and Santana was expecting her to flinch or pull away. When Brittany allowed her to embrace her, Santana felt her heart lighten. And when the blonde wrapped her arms securely around the smaller girl, the brunette for once felt nothing but hope.

xxxs

Santana was just stepping out of the school building after finishing her makeup test when her phone rang. She frowned seeing it was Coach Sylvester. She was already on edge thinking of Brittany going back home for the first time since Craig was arrested. With everything on her mind, the Latina wasn't entirely certain she had passed her exam.

"Hello?" she answered, trying to not to sound intimidated.

"Santana, where is Brittany?"

The brunette frowned at the urgent tone to Sue's voice. "She's with Quinn. Why?"

"Craig was released from jail this morning." The Coach replied in disgust. "Some overpaid, moronic, imbecile of a judge decided it would be appropriate to release him on $100,000 bail since he didn't have any prior criminal history. Just another example of the joke that is our criminal justice system. I just found out a few minutes ago."

"Oh fuck." Santana muttered. "They were going to swing by her house to pick up some of her things. He could already by there waiting on them! I gotta go!"

Santana disconnected the line before she heard Sue's response and sprinted for her car.

xxxx

Brittany stood staring up the staircase that led to her bedroom. She kept telling herself she could do it. She could go back in there just for a few minutes to grab the things she wanted to take with her. She could do it.

Quinn came to stand next to her and also gazed up the staircase. "I could go grab the stuff for you if you want. Or we can come back another time…with Santana too. There's no reason to rush Britt."

"No." the taller blonde replied with a sigh. "I have to. I don't wanna freak out when I come back with Ashley to get her stuff. So I should get my freak-out out of the way now."

Quinn smiled in encouragement and took Brittany's hand in her own. "Let's go then. The quicker we get up there the quicker we can get out of here and get back to those tacos you've been so excited about."

Brittany nodded once resolutely and the two slowly made their way up the stairs. Her hand was trembling when she pushed her bedroom door open and they slipped into the room.

Nothing looked different. But the blonde tried to remind herself that things were actually different. She could come into her bedroom without being scared. Craig was gone for good. Besides, Quinn was there and she was almost as awesome at protecting as Santana.

Quinn squeezed her hand before stepping further into the room and heading for the closet. "Where's your suitcase B? We can load your clothes into it. And the stuff on your desk can go in one of your shoeboxes."

Brittany nodded again and stepped toward her small vanity across the room from her closet and desk taking a deep breath. Quinn began pulling items of clothing out of the closet and throwing them onto the bed to pack. Brittany fiddled with different items on the vanity table before she finally turned back to her bed.

She squared her shoulders and stepped closer, her mind automatically drifting back to the last time she had been in it. Quinn eyed her intently, ready to step in and drag her friend out of the house if necessary. Brittany dropped to her knees beside the bed and reached under it, pulling her suitcase out. Quinn sighed in relief.

The two quickly got to work packing up the blonde's things, chatting quietly.

"Welcome home Brittany."

The voice surprised them, not having heard him approach. Both blondes spun on their feet and stared at the door where Craig stood, blocking the exit. He crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame, appearing completely relaxed.

"Wh-what are you doing here? I thought-they told me-"

"They told you what Brittany?" Craig interrupted harshly. "That I was arrested? That I was put in jail like a fucking _criminal_?"

Quinn stepped closer to Brittany, her heart racing. "That's what you are and that's where you belong."

Craig clenched his jaw and turned his gaze to Quinn. His eyes narrowed and he sighed. "I expected that little spic to be the one to play knight in shining armor for our little Britty. It doesn't matter. What does matter is that we are very clear on the fact that I am not going back to jail."

He finally pushed himself off of the door frame and stepped further into the room. Brittany seemed frozen in place and Quinn was frantically thinking of some way to escape.

"Don't be stupid." She finally hissed. "You got caught…there's no getting out of it now. Don't make things worse for yourself. Just let us go and we won't mention that we ran into you."

"Do you have any idea what they do to people charged with sex crimes in jail?" Craig yelled, ignoring Quinn, his angry gaze once again fixed on Brittany. "A lot of very bad things young lady. And I have you to blame for that! So tell me Brittany, what should I do to you? Huh? How should I punish you? That's a game we play see…she fucks up and I give her two choices of punishment to pick from. Only this time I don't think she deserves a choice."

Quinn inched closer to Brittany, who was still wide eyed and unmoving. The taller blonde flinched when she caught Quinn's movement out of the corner of her eye and seemed to come to her senses slightly. "Let Quinn go." She finally exclaimed. "Just let Quinn leave and then-"

"No!" Quinn cried. "We're both leaving right now. Come on Brittany."

Quinn took another step closer to her friend with her hand extended. Craig growled and suddenly lunged for the shorter girl. He reached and delivered a stinging backhand across Quinn's face before she even realized he was rushing toward her. Brittany screamed as Quinn stumbled and slammed her head into the desk as she fell from the force of the blow.

"Quinn! No, leave her alone!"

Brittany rushed forward and dropped to her knees next to where Quinn had fallen. The girl was unmoving and blood was beginning to stream from a cut to her temple. Brittany reached and frantically shook Quinn's shoulders hoping to rouse her.

"Quinn, please. Get up please! Wake up!"

"Now look what you've done." Craig hissed as he hovered over Brittany. He reached and grabbed her by her shoulders and slung her back away from the unconscious girl. "You killed your mother and your cat, and now you probably killed one of your best friends. In fact, as soon as I'm finished with you, I'll give her a try too…what do you think of that?"

Craig grabbed Brittany again and dragged her to the bed where he roughly shoved her onto it. She tried to scramble away from him but he grabbed her around the waist and threw her back onto the bed once again.

The man began to rip at her shirt once he was able to straddle her. Brittany clawed at his arms and face frantically but was unable to buck him off of her.

"Stop fighting me you little bitch!" Craig yelled. "You did this. You just couldn't keep your fucking mouth shut and now you're going to pay. I'm going to kill you Brittany…and then I'm going to finish that little blonde over there."

Brittany snapped with a yell. She was free, she was safe. And suddenly he was back to ruin it all once again. She swung a fist and connected with Craig's temple and tried once again to kick him off of her.

Craig laughed and shook his head to clear it from the sting and held on to the girl beneath him. "You're feisty tonight…it's kind of turning me on."

The man delivered a quick punch to Brittany's cheek as she continued to swing at him. The blow stunned her enough that Craig was able to pin her hands above her head with one hand while he continued to rip at her clothes with the other.

Brittany cried out again when Craig shoved his hand down into her pants, clawing her roughly. He laughed at the pained look on her face.

"You should be used to this by now shouldn't you?"

He suddenly jerked his hand from between her legs and grabbed the waistband of her Cheerio sweatpants, roughly ripping them down her legs and tossing them to the side. Brittany screamed out again and continued to swing at him, trying to knock him off balance but Craig was too strong.

He drew back a fist and hit her again across the face. He backhanded her quickly across her opposite cheek before once again driving his fist into her face.

The blonde grimaced when she saw blood spew and splatter across the comforter next to her head but she felt her strength slipping. She only vaguely comprehended the sound of Craig unzipping his pants.

The pain from him roughly thrusting into her was thankfully dulled slightly by the sharp sting in her face where he had hit her. Unfortunately, Craig continued to rain blows down on her body erratically as he pumped in and out of her. He finally tensed and with a growl, came inside of her.

"Is this what you wanted?" Craig panted, still on top of her. "You just had to run your mouth again. Didn't you learn anything the first time? Now I'm forced to hurt you and your friends. This isn't the way I wanted it to be Brittany. But I won't go back to jail, I won't! And as long as you can't testify against me they have no case. So you'll be seeing your mother again real soon…"

xxxx

Santana was shaking as she quietly slipped into Brittany's house. She immediately heard the struggle on the floor above her. She whipped out her cell phone and quickly dialed 911 before rushing up the steps on shaking legs.

The scene in front of her made her stomach drop. Quinn was lying facedown in a puddle of blood and Craig was straddling Brittany and punching her even as she was just lying there limp. It wasn't until she noticed her girlfriend was naked from the waist down that her senses returned to her.

With a vicious yell, Santana rushed forward and launched herself onto Craig's back, clawing and scratching at his face and head. The man hissed in pain and tried to throw her off of his back but Santana held on, kicking into his sides as well.

Craig finally stumbled from the bed, still trying to flip the furious girl off of him. He finally turned and slammed backwards into the wall and Santana grunted in pain. He repeated the motion until he felt her grip on him slacken.

Craig was finally able to twist out of her grasp and he turned, swinging toward Santana's head. She ducked slightly and instead of direct blow to her face, his fist glanced off of her forehead.

Santana quickly thrust a knee into his side and he once again grunted. Craig folded into himself slightly but managed to get his hands on both of Santana's arms and with a yell; he turned and shoved her away from him. She landed with a grunt and rolled, her head smacking into the floor roughly.

She scrambled to her feet as Craig rushed back towards her and tried to clear her head. Before he could reach her, a flash of blonde slammed into him from the side and Brittany once again began swinging and clawing at his face.

"Don't touch her!" she screamed.

Craig once again tried to subdue the flailing blonde and resorted to once again picking her up and slinging her as far as he could to put distance between them. She slammed into the small vanity in the corner of the room and the mirror shattered around her.

"Britt!" Santana yelled and rushed for her girlfriend where she was kneeling on the floor, surrounded by glass.

Craig rushed forward as well and Brittany didn't allow herself time to think before she reached for a shard of glass from the broken mirror. When Craig reached for her, the blonde summoned her remaining strength and jumped to her feet and turned, thrusting forward with the glass shard.

Time seemed to slow. She registered the blood leaking down her hand and arm from the glass cutting into her own palm before she registered that the glass shard was embedded in Craig's throat. Their eyes met briefly before the man began to gag and cough, blood beginning to gurgle in his mouth.

He once again shoved her away and tried to turn and flee, unsteady on his feet. He scrambled out the bedroom door hoping to escape down the stairs. Santana rushed after him and as he reached the top landing she charged him.

"Hey…fucking bastard!"

Craig turned, still gripping the stair railing, his breath gurgling around the piece of glass in his esophagus.

"You don't touch her and get away with it." Santana growled as she came to a stop feet from him. "You hurt my girl…and you're gonna rot in hell."

His eyes widened just as Santana shifted and delivered a kick squarely to the middle of his chest. Craig tumbled down the stairs and landed at the bottom in an unmoving, crumpled heap.

The brunette was trembling from exertion and adrenaline as she turned on her heel and headed back into the bedroom as quickly as she could. She arrived in time to see Brittany slump to her knees before collapsing forward onto the floor.

"Shit, baby. Britt, come on baby…it's over, you're safe. Brittany?"

Santana brushed blonde hair away from her girlfriend's bloody face and cringed at the bruises already forming. Her breathing was shallow and her eyes were closed. Santana pressed a quick kiss to her temple. "I-I'm gonna check on Quinn baby, just hang on ok? I'll be right back. Shit."

She scrambled across the room to where Quinn was still laying unconscious. Santana frantically felt for a pulse and breathed a sigh of relief when she felt one. The sound of a siren in the distance finally caught Santana's attention and she gripped Quinn's shirt roughly in her fist.

"Hang on Quinn." She whispered fiercely. "Help is coming. Just hang on. You fucking die and I will…I'll kill you!"

Santana quickly moved back to Brittany's side and gently shook her shoulder. The blonde's eyes fluttered open but they were unfocused and her body was trembling.

"Shock." Santana mumbled, remembering lectures from her father over dinner tables. "You're in shock Britt but everything's ok, you're ok now. Just hang on."

When the police busted into the home a few seconds later, Santana leaned over the blonde and tried to cover her half naked body the best she could.

It wasn't until the paramedics arrived and began to tend to her friends that Santana was finally able to breathe properly.

A/N - couldn't end it so easily with him just being arrested. Feel free to yell at me if you feel the need.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N – So sorry for the delay. Computers crashing are of the devil. I tried hard to get this back to how it was before I lost everything but I never did quite find the same flow. So instead of one chapter and an epilogue I wrapped it all up in this one. Again, I'm so sorry for the delay! If anyone is still with me, thanks, you're awesome!

A/N 2 - I got a message saying chapter 7 didn't actually upload so I'm trying again. Sorry!

Chapter 7

Santana slipped quietly into the darkened hospital room and immediately felt the tension drain from her body. The gentle tone of the machines behind the bed created a white noise in her ears.

Finally. She inched closer to the bed and sighed at the sight of the still form in front of her. The brunette reached and gently took her girlfriend's hand between her own. Brittany was bruised and sedated but she was there. Santana shuddered at the thought of how easily her world could have been taken away from her.

But Craig was dead. He couldn't hurt Brittany anymore. For the first time since she received Coach Sylvester's call that afternoon, Santana finally felt a sense of peace in her soul. One that only came with finally seeing for herself that her girlfriend was still with her.

xxxx

"_Miss, miss you need to calm down."_

"_Fuck you!" Santana yelled, trying to force her way past the nurses blocking the door. "Get out of my way…I need to be in there! She needs me!"_

_Two nurses were attempting to subdue the struggling girl as Santana tried to make her way through the doorway she had seen Brittany disappear behind as the medics tended to her._

"_Miss, you need to be checked out yourself. Your friend is in good hands. You're hysterical…you need to calm down."_

"_I am not hysterical!" Santana railed. "You want to see hysterical? You'll see hysterical when I call my Papí down here and he fucking puts you on orderly duty for the rest of your miserable existence! Now get the fuck-"_

"_Santana Lopez!"_

_The brunette's rant immediately died at the sound of her mother's voice. She turned and saw Mrs. Lopez and Coach Sylvester storming down the hallway toward them. _

"_Mama." Santana whimpered before she fell into her mother's arms, the fight leaving her. "Britt…and Quinn. They're…Oh god mama."_

_Mrs. Lopez wrapped her arms securely around her daughter and breathed a sigh of relief at seeing her relatively unharmed. She immediately caught sight of scratches and bruises but over all Santana seemed fairly uninjured._

"_It's ok mija." She whispered, pressing a kiss to her daughter's head. "Everything is going to be alright. You're safe and your Papí will make sure Brittany and Quinn are taken care of. They're going to be fine."_

_Santana didn't realize she was sobbing until a few minutes later when she finally pulled away from her mother. They were seated on the hard plastic chairs in the hospital lobby. At not knowing how much time had passed or how she had ended up sitting, the brunette felt panic clawing its way back up and struggled to catch her breath._

"_Easy Lopez, just breathe. You did good."_

_Sue's words finally settled over her and Santana breathed deeply. "Are they ok? Where are they? Where's Brittany?"_

"_They're both still being checked out by doctors." Coach Sylvester replied with a nod. "You showing up when you did and dialing 911 probably saved them."_

"_Quinn…there was so much blood…and Britt, she just collapsed."_

_Mrs. Lopez brushed her daughter's unruly hair back away from her tear streaked face. "Mija, they will be fine, you'll see. But you will be seen to as well. I've called your father and the he is seeing to Brittany and Quinn and will be down to check you out as well."_

"_I'm fine-"_

"_Don't argue Lopez." Sue interrupted. "You'll be checked out and that's an order."_

_Santana nodded slightly before settling against her mother's side, too tired to argue._

xxxx

Santana settled lightly down onto the bed next to Brittany, careful not to jostle the blonde too much. She scooted as close as she could until she and Brittany were mere inches apart. The brunette reached a trembling hand and gently tucked blonde hair behind her girlfriend's ear.

"I'm here B." she whispered. "I'm right here and you're safe now. So you just rest ok? And I'll be right here when you wake up."

Santana leaned closer and brushed a soft kiss to the sleeping girl's forehead before settling down next to her on the pillow and finally allowing her eyes to drift closed.

xxxx

"_Everything looks fine Miss Lopez." A nurse said with a smile. "No concussion, no need for stitches. Just take it easy for a while and take Tylenol if you develop a headache but other than that you're just fine."_

_Santana had to restrain herself from snapping an "I told you so" after the nurse declared she would require no further treatment. But her mother was in the room with her and had quirked a brow in silent warning._

_Santana simply nodded mutely and hopped up from the examining table. Mrs. Lopez stepped closer and wrapped an arm around her daughter's shoulders as they headed back out to the waiting room._

_By that time, word had gotten around and their friends had begun to gather in the waiting room hoping for news from the three of them. Judy Fabray was nervously wringing her hands and pacing in front of the plastic chairs. _

"_If that dude wasn't already dead I'd go pound his ass!" Puck hissed._

"_I already beat you to it Puckerman." Santana replied as they stepped further into the room. She tried to sound convincing but her tone lacked its usual bite. _

_At the sight of the brunette, Puck and the others jumped to their feet and rushed closer. Puck and Mercedes both reached to pull the smaller girl into a hug._

"_I wouldn't expect anything less." Puck replied softly. "You ok Santana?"_

_She nodded and tried to smile encouragingly. "Of course I'm fine. Have they-have they said anything about Britt or Quinn yet?"_

_Mercedes shook her head 'no' and the friends settled down into the uncomfortable chairs and continued to wait._

xxxx

Santana blinked against the sunlight as it streamed into the room. With a groan, she stretched hoping to soothe her aching muscles. She sighed and finally forced her eyes open and willed her foggy mind to focus.

Inches away, Brittany was resting peacefully, still sound asleep. Santana swallowed thickly as the previous days events came rushing back to her. She quickly reached and cupped the blonde's face gently. Brittany sighed in her sleep and instinctively turned more toward her girlfriend without waking.

A soft voice clearing its throat behind her caused Santana to startle slightly. There she saw her mother settled into the hospital issued lounge chair. The older woman smiled at her daughter before pulling herself from the uncomfortable recliner. Santana sat up from her spot next to Brittany but didn't move from her side.

"Good morning mija." Mrs. Lopez said softly, careful not to wake the blonde.

Santana sighed and ran a hand over her face tiredly. "Morning mama."

Mrs. Lopez leaned closer when she reached the younger brunette and pressed a kiss to her daughter's forehead. "You two looked so cute…cuddled together, just like when you were children. I should have known then really…"

Santana glanced back over her shoulder to where Brittany continued to rest.

"Good news," Mrs. Lopez continued, causing Santana to turn her attention back to her mother. "Quinn is going to be just fine. She has a nasty concussion but she's going to be just fine."

A smile finally split Santana's face. "They're both ok?" she asked softly.

Mrs. Lopez chuckled and nodded. "They're both going to be just fine. Lucky for them or they would have you to deal with."

Santana smiled again as her mother pulled her closer and wrapped her arms around her. But she pulled away quickly. "Ashley-"

"I spoke to Sally's mother, let her know what happened." Mrs. Lopez quickly interrupted. "They're coming back tomorrow. I know Brittany will want to see her sister…she'll want to be with her sister. Which is why I was thinking your father's study should perhaps be converted into another bedroom. Brittany and Ashley will both need their own space."

Mrs. Lopez smiled at the stunned look on Santana's face. The younger girl fought to control her trembling lip as she once again threw herself into her mother's arms.

xxxx

"I don't want her to see me like this."

Santana sighed. "Brittany…baby she's your sister."

"Yeah," the blonde interrupted. "My baby sister who has already had to deal with a crap ton of bad things. I don't want her to see me looking all beat up. I don't wanna scare her."

Brittany's sad tone caused the brunette's heart to clench. Santana scooted closer to her girlfriend and reached for the blonde's hands that were clenched in her lap. "Britt, of course Ashley is going to be scared. But not of you. Can you imagine how you would feel if she had been hurt and you couldn't get there to see her?"

"That would suck. But I would totally get to her; I wouldn't let anything stop me."

"And that's exactly how she feels baby." Santana replied softly. "Ashley loves you and she needs to see you. She just wants to be with her big sister. And you can't blame her for that…you are pretty awesome."

Brittany finally glanced up and met Santana's tender gaze. The brunette felt the ache in her heart ease as the blonde's lips finally quirked into a half smile. The last day and a half had been difficult since Brittany had finally come to.

The police had been by to question all three girls. Quinn unfortunately was unable to remember anything past arriving at Brittany's house to help her pack. The taller blonde on the other hand relayed the details the officers needed while Santana and Mrs. Lopez sat alongside her. The day had taken a toll on her and Brittany had silently curled up on the bed seemingly oblivious to her surroundings.

Santana was only able to rouse her girlfriend at the mention of Ashley returning. Santana and her mother tried to be upbeat and encouraging in the hope that they could keep Brittany from growing more reserved and depressed.

The blonde was of course relieved that Craig was gone but she had felt that same relief before. When her mother had promised to help her and then again after finally talking to Coach Sylvester.

Yes, Brittany had felt that relief before. That hope. She was afraid to feel it again. The crushing reality when it vanished was too much to go through again.

But a few hours later, when Ashley rushed to jump onto the hospital bed and into Brittany's arms, the blonde couldn't help but feel that same relief flooding her once again. And as she met Santana's soft teary smile from across the room, it quickly bloomed into hope yet again.

xxxx

Brittany and Ashley spent the next few days together quietly. The two sisters needed time to reconnect after all they had been through. Santana however never wandered far from her girlfriend.

Two days after arriving back at the Lopez home, a soft knock sounded at the front door. Mrs. Lopez smiled brightly as she ushered Quinn into the living room where Brittany and Santana were cuddled on the couch while Ashley entertained them with an epic adventure taking place with her dolls while music videos droned on in the background on TV.

"Girls," Mrs. Lopez announced, "look who's here! Finally off of doctor ordered bed rest."

Quinn chuckled and nodded as she stepped further into the room. Brittany immediately rose from the couch and moved to stand in front of the shorter blonde. Santana stood off to the side watching the two. They stared at each other for a few silent moments before Quinn swallowed thickly.

"Britt I-I'm so sorry…I wish I could have-"

Brittany silenced her by throwing her arms around her and pulling her close. "Stop Quinn. You're just like Santana…apologizing for something you didn't do. I'm sorry too. You shouldn't have gotten your head whacked by my table. Do you blame me for that?"

"Of course not!"

"Ok then." Brittany quickly responded. "Now come cuddle with us."

Quinn just shook her head with a smile and let Brittany pull her by the hand back toward the couch. Santana smirked at the shorter blonde as she came closer.

"Jesus Q, way to ruin a good vanity. Just how hard is that bottle blonde head of yours? You gonna have a scar?"

"Chicks dig scars." Ashley piped up from the corner before Quinn could answer.

The three teenagers and Mrs. Lopez turned to look at her questioningly. The younger girl just shrugged and went back to playing.

"She's been hanging around you too long Santana." Mrs. Lopez said with a sigh. "Quinn make yourself comfortable sweetie, I'll go put some dinner on. You're staying, no argument. Ashley, would you like to come help me?"

The girl smiled widely and scampered off into the kitchen with Mrs. Lopez while the three friends settled onto the couch with Brittany in the middle. An awkward silence fell as their minds wandered back over the events of the last few days and weeks. Finally Brittany sighed.

"Should we talk or something? Isn't that what Miss Pillsbury would say?"

Santana and Quinn exchanged a look from where they were seated on either side of the taller girl. "Do you want to talk?" Santana asked quietly, lacing her fingers with her girlfriends.

Quinn turned so that she was facing the other two, wincing slightly at the still dull ache in her head. Brittany frowned at the sight.

"I want to be normal." She replied quietly. "I want you two to not look at me like I'm flaking away or something. Quinn, I want your head to not hurt and Santana, I want you to stop clenching your jaw because I know that means you're thinking about how this is all your fault. Because it's not. I just want things to be normal again."

"Oh Britt." Santana sighed. "I hate to tell you this but…things are never normal with you."

Brittany snapped her gaze to meet Santana's dark eyes questioningly. The tenderness she saw there made her stomach flutter. Quinn chuckled beside her.

"She's right ya know." The shorter blonde added. "You are far from normal. And that's one thing we love about you. Remember that time you convinced Mr. Schuester that he taught you the second half of the alphabet to make him feel better? Or that time you followed Patches into the sewers to make sure he was eating enough?"

"You are too special to ever be normal baby." Santana said, tenderly brushing blonde hair away from her girlfriend's forehead. "You've come way too far to just be normal."

Brittany smiled finally and shrugged almost shyly. Santana reached and pulled both of her girlfriend's hands into her own lap, squeezing them.

"You're amazing Brittany." The brunette continued. "And we are here for you. We all love you. We're not going to let you go and we're not going to let you feel like you're less than you are. You are going to graduate and you are going to be the most amazing dancer or teacher or whatever the fuck you want to be."

"Yeah." Quinn agreed, scooting closer to her friends. "Just please, no more wandering off into sewers. You reeked for days."

Brittany chuckled before nodding and crossing her heart. Santana pulled the blonde closer and wrapped an arm around her thin shoulders before pressing a kiss to soft blonde hair.

Quinn smiled and turned back to the TV as the friends waited in companionable silence for dinner to be served.

xxxx

_Three Month Later_

"Britt! Brittany, baby, wake up!"

The blonde was clutching the bed sheets tightly in her fists and whimpering in her sleep. Her body was rigid and Santana felt her blood run cold at the sight of her girlfriend frozen in a night terror.

"Come on baby, you're safe. You're ok! I promise you're safe Brittany."

She reached and almost timidly shook one of the blonde's shoulders hoping to wake her. Brittany's eyes snapped open and she let out a cry as she scrambled away from the hands she felt pressing on her. She rolled onto her side with her back turned to her imagined assailant.

Santana sighed and inched closer. "Britt…baby…are you awake? Come on Brittany, come back to me."

Brittany could hear Santana's words in the distance but her mind was foggy as she tried to break free from her dream. Finally, she blinked and her mind registered her Cheerio's uniform tossed over the end of Santana's desk chair.

"San?"

The brunette felt tears stinging her eyes as Brittany whimpered, curled tightly into herself with her back turned.

"Yeah, baby, it's me." Santana whispered. "You're safe, I swear. Britt?" Santana scooted closer still and braced herself, hovering over her trembling girlfriend. "Brittany, can I…can I hold you? Please? Is that ok?"

A sob escaped Brittany's throat as she finally rolled over and threw herself toward her girlfriend. She pulled Santana closer to her and buried her head in the brunette's shoulder.

Santana wrapped her arms around the blonde and held her while her girlfriend continued to sob. "Shhh, baby it's ok." She whispered. "Don't be scared. You're safe. He's gone, I promise."

"San," Brittany choked out through her tears, "Santana please, please hold me. San…"

"I'm here!" Santana cried, pulling the blonde flush against her. "I've got you baby. I'm not going anywhere, I promise. I won't let go."

Santana gently stroked Brittany's soft blonde hair and hummed quietly into her ear. Brittany finally seemed to calm and seemed to fall limp in her girlfriend's arms. As the brunette felt the blonde relax she tried to roll them slightly so that Brittany would be resting on her back but she felt the taller girl resist slightly. Before Santana could object, Brittany was pulling them both upright on the bed.

"Britt?"

"I need you." Brittany whispered, almost harshly.

Santana's heart clenched at the desperation in Brittany's voice. "I'm here, I'm right here!" She cried, desperate to comfort the other girl.

"No." The blonde replied, shaking her head and trying to pull her girlfriend even closer to her. "No, I _need_ you. I need to not see him…to not feel him. Please! Santana _please_!"

Santana wrapped her arms tightly around Brittany hoping to calm her, realizing what Brittany was asking of her. "Relax baby, it was just a nightmare. You're safe here. No one is going to hurt you here."

Brittany pulled away from the brunette and with shaking hands, clutched at the tank top Santana had worn to bed. "Please San…I love you. I need you to help me forget. I want to remember you…not _him_!"

Santana looked deeply into Brittany's blue eyes and saw the pain there. But she also saw a familiar spark that she had been missing for months. She gently smoothed her blonde hair away from her girlfriend's face and swallowed thickly.

"Britt-"

The blonde wasted no time in grabbing Santana's wrist and unceremoniously shoving the brunette's hand between her own legs. "_Please_."

Santana involuntarily moaned at the warmth that met her hand and she realized just how badly she had been aching to be with the blonde. "You're sure? I don't want to hurt you baby..."

Brittany pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and closed her eyes, willing thoughts of her step father from her mind. She nodded once before scooting closer to Santana and throwing her arms around her.

Santana tentatively began to move her fingers between Brittany's legs, anxiously watching for any sign of distress from the blonde.

"Baby," Santana whispered. "Baby I need you to look at me. I need to see you, please. I need to know you see me."

With her free hand, Santana gently tilted Brittany's head up and softly thumbed her girlfriend's cheek until blue eyes opened.

Santana smiled slightly at the look in the blonde's eyes. They were darkened with lust, a look that immediately sent a spark of arousal throughout her own body. "I love you." She whispered.

Brittany surged forward and crashed their lips together. "I love you too!" Her words ended in a hitch as her body tensed and her orgasm washed over her.

Santana was quick to envelope the trembling girl in her arms and rocked her back and forth soothingly as Brittany once again began to sob into her neck. The brunette peppered kisses to the blonde's head and held her tightly until Brittany seemed to calm.

Finally, Brittany pulled away slightly and looked up into Santana's worried dark eyes. "I love you." She whispered again. "Thank you…"

Santana pressed her lips to Brittany's forehead and once again pulled the girl flush against her. "Oh Brit. Don't thank me. I should have seen…I should have gotten you out of there-"

Brittany stiffened and once again pulled away. "No." she hissed. "No Santana. This is not your fault. It's his. It's all his! And you saved me…and Quinn. I love you Santana. I love you. I'll keep telling you as many times as I have to…this is not your fault! I love you!"

Santana didn't realize she had tears streaming down her face until she felt Brittany gently brushing them away. The blonde then leaned in closer until their lips met. The kiss began soft but quickly became heated as Brittany nudged Santana backwards onto the bed, their bodies molding together once again.

The next morning Santana woke and blinked the sleep from her eyes. She smiled at the warm weight she felt pressing down on her. Brittany was still sound asleep with her head on Santana's shoulder and one leg thrown over the smaller girl's body. The brunette smiled and scooted closer to her girlfriend as the blonde instinctively tightened her grip.

Santana pressed a kiss to Brittany's head as the taller girl hummed in contentment.

xxxx

_Epilogue_

"You did this to her!" Santana yelled, lunging for the dark haired man with a frightened look on his face. "Do you hear her in there? You son of a bitch!"

Quinn and Mrs. Lopez barely managed to restrain the furious brunette before she could reach the man.

"Santana, calm down! You're being ridiculous!" Quinn insisted.

"R-ridiculous?" Santana hissed as she continued to struggle. "She is in pain and it's his fault! I'm about to fucking cut somebody. That's right boy, I've got a blade, you better be scared you little-"

Before Santana could complete her threat, Brittany stepped out of the room, a wide grin on her face. Santana and the dark haired man both immediately rushed closer.

"It's a girl." Brittany said as she clasped her hands in front of her mouth and laughed happily. "Our girl had a girl! Well, go on in daddy…Ashley and your daughter are waiting for you."

The young man wore an expression of both awe and fear as he slipped into his girlfriend's hospital room.

Brittany was still giggling as she turned to Santana who had remained frozen in spot after the news.

"San?" Brittany said softly. "You ok?"

"Is Ashley ok?" Santana finally whispered. "And the baby?"

Brittany met Quinn's eye over the brunette's shoulder and smiled in amusement. She then stepped closer to Santana and pulled her into her arms. "Yeah San, they're both ok. Better than ok, they're both awesome! Babies are usually squishy and gross when they come out but seriously San, this one is perfect. She's all tiny and pink…we're aunties San!"

Santana sighed in relief and burrowed deeper into Brittany's embrace. "Of course she's perfect." She finally replied. "What else did you expect? They're really ok?"

Brittany pulled away just enough to meet the smaller woman's worried gaze. She smiled tenderly and nodded. "I promise. You want to meet her? Because I know she wants to meet her Aunt Santana."

Santana nodded mutely and let Brittany take her by the hand and lead her into Ashley's room. The younger blonde was sitting up in bed with a little pink bundle in her arms, her boyfriend Trevor gazing down at the pair with a goofy grin on his face.

As the two stepped closer to the bed, Ashley turned to them and smiled widely. "Hi Auntie 'Tana. Come meet your niece, Elena Susan Harris."

"Elena…" Santana whispered. "That's…"

Ashley giggled at the dazed look on the brunette's face. "It's you and your mom's middle name, I know. After everything you and your family have done for us…and Brittany…Trevor and I wanted to do something special…to thank you."

"Even if you did just threaten to cut me." Trevor added sheepishly.

Brittany laughed and tugged on Santana's hand, encouraging her to step closer to the bed. The brunette seemed to snap from her daze and finally inched closer. Ashley smiled up at her from the bed as Santana leaned down and timidly pushed back the blanket to get a better look at the baby.

"Hello little one…Elena. You are going to be the prettiest, smartest, toughest…sweetest…"

"Santana, are you crying?"

The brunette stood abruptly with a sniffle and quickly brushed at the tears on her cheeks. "Fuck no. I've got something in my eye."

She then turned and rushed from the room. The sisters shared a smile before Brittany rolled her eyes with a chuckle and headed out to comfort the brunette.

xxxx

A few days after Elena's birth, Brittany wandered off alone. Santana knew it was coming, just as it did every year around this time. Brittany would get a certain look in her eye and Santana knew to give her a little time and space.

But never too much. After a few hours with no word from the blonde, Santana headed out to find her, already knowing where to look. She found Brittany right where she expected she would, sitting on the ground and gazing out over the only pond in Lima.

Santana stood and watched the blonde quietly until she was certain Brittany knew she was there. Only then she stepped closer and let Brittany reach for her hand. The brunette let the taller woman pull her down and she settled between her long legs.

Twelve years had passed since Susan was killed and Brittany had been abused by Craig. Their dreams of New York and stardom changed as the blonde refused to leave her sister. They instead continued to make their home in Lima, Ashley moving into their apartment when they moved out of the Lopez home on their own.

Santana it seemed had a knack for business and after college she bought and was running a local restaurant while Brittany had become a kindergarten teacher. It wasn't what they had dreamed of when they were stalking the halls of McKinley High School, but they were happy. And Ashley and Trevor were happy with their young family. It was more then either of them felt they deserved at times.

Santana sighed in contentment as Brittany wrapped her arms tightly around her from behind.

"Hi." Brittany breathed into the smaller woman's ear in front of her.

Santana squeezed the arms holding her tightly and burrowed deeper into the blonde's chest. "Hey baby. You ok?"

Brittany sighed but nodded with her chin on Santana's shoulder. "It was twelve years ago today…"

"I know baby." The brunette replied softly. "Your mom would be so proud of you and Ashley…and Elena? I'm sorry she's not here Britt. Your mom would have loved being a grandma. We'll just have to make sure she's good and spoiled."

Brittany pressed a kiss just below Santana's ear and the brunette felt a little of her worry fade at the smile she felt pressed against her skin.

"I don't think that'll be a problem." The blonde said with a chuckle. "You've already bought her enough outfits to last until she's twelve. And really? Don't you think she's a little young to already have a credit card on our account? She's a week old."

Santana smirked. "She is going to be set and have everything she has ever wanted…I intend to make sure of it."

Brittany once again chuckled and threaded her fingers with Santana's, admiring how the matching wedding bands glinted in the sunlight. "Well…what do you think about maybe saving a little something for our own little girl or guy?"

"Why Brittany Pierce-Lopez, are you saying you want to have a baby with me?" Santana replied with a flirty laugh. She secretly had been working up the courage to have a similar conversation with the blonde but had never found the nerve. Brittany was unable to have children due to the damage Craig had done and Santana hated to remind her wife of past hurts.

Instead of the laughter she expected, the brunette was met with a soft sigh and a squeeze. "I think am Santana. Why not? We have so much love to give…and we'd be totally awesome moms."

Santana twisted abruptly in her wife's arms when her words finally registered. "Britt? Are shitting me? You want to…I mean you know I'd have to…you trust me?"

The blonde smiled at Santana's wide eyed stare. "Well, I mean only if you're ok with it…you'd have to carry it since I can't…and if you don't want to-"

Santana turned completely then in the blonde's lap then and grabbed the taller woman's shoulders. "I do. I want a baby…with you. But you would be so much better at this. You should be the one to carry it. What if I mess it up?"

"Santana." Brittany interrupted. "Don't be silly. The way you've taken care of me our whole lives…you'll be the best mom ever. Of course I trust you to carry our baby. I…I'd be honored Santana."

The brunette felt tears pooling as she gazed at her wife, blue eyes full of love. "I love you Brittany. Let's have a baby."

Brittany smiled widely. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Santana replied, just as excited. "Oh my God, we're gonna be moms!"

Brittany giggled and pulled her wife flush against her, holding her tightly. "You are gonna look super hot all knocked up."

Santana laughed. "Will you still love me when I'm fat?"

"Of course…I'll always love you Santana, no matter what."

The brunette felt her heart soar as her wife held her tightly. "We've got a lot of details to work out…like a dad for example. Maybe we can find a blonde so that she'll look like a little of both of us."

Brittany smiled widely hearing Santana already declaring their non-existent baby to be a girl. She frowned at hearing the last few words however. "Well, I'd rather she come out looking like you but if you insist I guess we can find a blonde…Just promise me you won't ask Sam. I'm afraid she'll get his lips and then swallow you whole while she's feeding. That would suck…"

Santana laughed loudly before pulling away just enough to clasp her wife's face in her hands. "I fucking love you Brittany Susan Pierce-Lopez. And I promise…no guppy babies."

"Awesome. Now let's get started on knocking you up…I think we should get a few practice runs in before the real thing."

In an instant, the blonde had flipped them so that Santana was pinned underneath her. The brunette felt her breath catch at how quickly their positions had reversed. She smiled widely up at her wife as the taller woman hovered above her.

"I like the way you think wifey…"

Brittany grinned wickedly before crashing their lips together soundly.

The End.

A/N – Thanks so much for those who actually stuck around for the ending. Again, it's not exactly like I had planned but computer crashes and life can be quite tricky. Thanks again for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and just plain sticking around. You're awesome!


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